Bill Maher Says His Friendship With Larry David Is Over After Trump Dinner Backlash

Bill Maher has revealed that his longtime friendship with Larry David has come to an end, following a public dispute over Maher’s meeting with President Donald Trump earlier this year.

In a new interview with The Free Press, Maher said the fallout has been real and personal. When asked whether his outspoken opinions have cost him friends, Maher didn’t hesitate. He confirmed that he and Larry David are no longer close and no longer speak.

Maher explained that David has not reached out to him since criticizing his April dinner with Trump at the White House. The comedian said he addressed the situation directly on his HBO show, Real Time with Bill Maher, shortly before Thanksgiving.

The tension escalated after Larry David, best known for Curb Your Enthusiasm, published a satirical essay in The New York Times titled “My Dinner With Adolf.” In the piece, David mocked the idea of having dinner with a controversial leader, using Adolf Hitler as a comparison. While the essay never mentioned Maher by name, it was widely understood as a response to Maher’s comments about Trump, whom Maher had described as “gracious” and “measured” after their meeting.

Maher said he was surprised by the essay but felt he responded strongly on his show. During the episode, he criticized what he called “childish” and “purely emotional” reactions to his dinner with Trump and directly called out David.

Maher pushed back against comparisons between Trump and Hitler, saying such arguments are exaggerated and unhelpful. He also noted that David had repeatedly declined invitations to appear on Real Time, often saying he didn’t feel informed enough about politics.

On the show, Maher defended his decision to meet with Trump, arguing that refusing to talk to a sitting president is not productive. He said engaging with people you disagree with does not automatically mean endorsing them.

In David’s op-ed, he wrote from the perspective of someone agreeing to have dinner with Hitler in 1939, arguing that talking to “the other side” can be justified even when that side has committed serious wrongs. The piece framed the dinner as an act of misplaced goodwill.

For Maher, however, the disagreement appears to have permanently damaged a once-friendly relationship. As he made clear in the interview, the divide is no longer just political—it’s personal.