Dear Gossips,
Finally, this interminable award season is over. It’s done! We can stop talking about the Oscars for at least two months! Until Cannes kicks off in May, anyway! Zendaya can go inside at last! We’ll be picking apart the good, the bad, and the WTF all day, so keep refreshing, and for those of you who joined us on The Squawk for the live chat, thank you! It was truly so fun. Now, let’s talk about the heroes and villains of the Oscars telecast, which is to say, the host and the presenters. Specifically, Jimmy Kimmel, John Mulaney, and John Cena.
Let’s be fair to Jimmy Kimmel—hosting the Oscars is a thankless job, yet he’s done it four times now, he has it down pat, and he is, actually, a pretty good host. He knows how to keep the show moving, he knows how to finesse the audience as the night wears on, both in the room and at home. He did whiff a bit with the quip about the only “presentable” parts of Poor Things, alluding to how naked Emma Stone is for much of the film, which is trending toward Seth McFarlane “We Saw Your Boobs” territory, and Emma did NOT play along with the bit, but overall, Jimmy did a good job. He and his team of writers picked the right touchstones to connect with the broader audience, which was easy this year because everyone saw Barbie and Oppenheimer, which gave him those built-in touchpoints. (Speaking of, the Oppen-Oscars delivered, winning all 7 categories I predicted, including the two actor awards, Best Director, and Best Picture.)
But you know who stole the show? John Mulaney and John Cena! That’s why they’re the “villains” of the Oscars, because just like a good villain in a movie, they sweep in for a moment and steal the scene right out from under the hero. Jimmy’s over here working his ass off to keep the show moving—it did, as promised, end in exactly three and a half hours—but all anyone can talk about are John Mulaney and John Cena. They’re the Loki to his Thor!
While presenting the Oscar for Best Sound, Mulaney went on a very funny rant about Field of Dreams, and now, of course, everyone wants him to host the Oscars next year.
He also had the best Madame Web joke of the night. Mulaney has hosted events before, notably the Independent Spirit Awards twice (with Nick Kroll), and this year’s Governors’ Awards, but those shows are VASTLY different gigs from hosting the OSCARS. The Oscars is the hardest, crappiest, least-appreciated hosting job in Hollywood. Everyone hates the host, even when the host does a good job. But everyone loves presenters, which is why Mulaney, and John Cena, would be smart to remain presenters. Swoop in, do your funny two-minute bit, and leave a winner.
John Cena also got a good laugh from the crowd, appearing mostly nude to “honor” the 50th anniversary of the 1974 streaker, and present Best Costume. It was a clever bit given the category, Cena is plenty charismatic to pull it off, Jimmy played along, everyone wins this round, too.
Overall, the presenter bits were strong this year, but even though he won’t get credit for it, that is down to Jimmy Kimmel and his writing staff for the show. They’re not just writing jokes for Jimmy, they’re writing for the presenters, too. So, while no one appreciates the host on Oscar night, let’s take a moment to recognize that Jimmy Kimmel is actually getting pretty good at this, and it might not be the worst idea in the world to make him the host indefinitely. As long as he wants it, he can do it, and people like Johns Mulaney and Cena can come in and crush a bit to keep the crowd engaged in between host patter.
Live long and gossip,
Sarah
