By Chantal Da Silva and Andrew Blankstein -
NBC News
Comedian Dave Chappelle was attacked Tuesday during a performance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California, by a person who jumped him on stage.
In a video posted on social media, an audience member can be seen running onto the stage before knocking Chappelle down as security officers run to intervene.
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The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed the incident and told NBC Los Angeles that the male suspect was armed with a replica pistol that could eject a knife blade when properly discharged.
It is not clear if he tried to use the weapon.
Los Angeles police said the suspect had been in the audience before the attack, then jumped onto the stage and attacked Chappelle just as he was about to leave the stage.
The 48-year-old American comedian was performing in the
Dave Chappelle and Friends
show , which was part of the Netflix Is A Joke festival.
Security guards hired for the show intervened and pulled the suspect away from the comedian before taking him into custody.
The suspect suffered superficial injuries during the altercation and was taken to the hospital after the incident, according to police.
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Chappelle was not injured in the attack.
Brianna Sacks, a BuzzFeed News reporter who attended the show and witnessed the altercation, told our sister network NBC News that she was stunned after the suspect "charged and tackled Chappelle."
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He said both uniformed security workers and people in plain clothes appeared to rush to Chappelle's aid and had begun "kicking and punching" the suspect in an assault that went on for several minutes.
Dave Chapelle at the Fox Theater in Oakland, Calif. Tim Mosenfelder/Corbis via Getty Images
Chappelle later continued the show, joking about the altercation, which she said appeared to leave some audience members in shock.
"We all froze," she recalled.
The comedian also discussed how he has had to beef up his security after facing widespread backlash for his jokes about the transgender community.
It's unclear why the suspect attacked Chappelle and police have yet to release his identity.
In the video shared by Sacks, a man can be seen being loaded into an ambulance via stretcher as onlookers jeer.
Sacks watched the badly injured assailant being loaded into an ambulance after the show.
Sacks compared the incident to comedian Chris Rock being slapped onstage by actor Will Smith at the Oscars on March 27.
Rock had also performed at the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday and said he had joked about the incident before Chappelle was approached.
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Rock had also taken to the stage after the attack and joked that the suspect "maybe it was Will Smith."
"You know, they were like, 'Is that Will Smith?
“I think it reflects what reality is like for comedians right now,” he said.
Representatives for Chappelle and the Hollywood Bowl did not immediately respond to requests for comment from NBC News.
