It’s officially award show season! However, it can be hard to look forward to shows like the Grammys and Oscars when show hosts are constantly falling short of expectations. From overused jokes, cringy pre-written skits and some of the time a host with no comedic talent, award season can be dampened by the show’s emcee.
A mistake a lot of award shows make is hiring hosts who make the entire ceremony about them or are just not funny. The routine of comedians coming up on stage and saying one unfunny joke after another while the audience waits to find out who won is getting tiring.
A comedian who perfectly embodied an award show nightmare flawlessly was Jo Koy, who hosted the 81st Annual Golden Globes Jan. 7.
He started off his opening monologue by stating how ill-prepared he was, blaming his bad jokes on the fact that he got the job 10 days before the show. That was the first of many awkward jokes made by Koy, later making a joke about Taylor Swift who was in attendance.
“The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL: on the Golden Globes we have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift,” said Koy.
The nail in the coffin for his unfunny hosting abilities was his sexist, albeit ironic, comment about the “Barbie” movie directed by Greta Gerwig. A movie about how men underestimate women’s power and their right to autonomy over their life, was crushed and belittled by a man at one of Hollywood’s biggest events of the year.
“’Oppenheimer’ is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and ‘Barbie’ is on a plastic doll with big boobies,” said Koy.
Watering down a movie about feminism that struck a chord with many women in America and beyond is very ironic considering that is essentially the whole point of the movie.
Hosting an award show, according to many comedians, is one of the hardest jobs in the business. You have to write jokes that aren’t too controversial but keep the audience and guests on their toes, and all in all remain funny. Many celebrities have publicly turned down the gig due to its controversial nature.
This is certainly not the first time a comedian has shot and missed at an award show. Most notably, comedian Ricky Gervais hosted the Golden Globes in 2020 and he decided to play into this villainous character he’s known for, making very contentious jokes at the expense of many celebrities. Starting off with digs at actor Leonardo DiCaprio and his taste in younger women, roasting director Martin Scorsese for being too short to ride a theme park ride, but then toward the end his jokes got a little too real for some Hollywood stars.
“If you do win an award tonight don’t use this as a platform to make a political speech. You’re in no position to lecture the public about anything. You know nothing about the real world,” said Gervais.
These jokes got backlash from the press and other Hollywood stars, but got substantial praise from the general public.
A lot of people applauded Gervais for humbling these celebrities and reminding them of their privilege. The difference between Gervais and Koy is that Gervais made controversial comments, but they were done in a tasteful manner. He wasn’t harassing or making crude jokes about anyone or anything in particular, he was joking about the absurdity of Hollywood culture. Additionally, Gervais has more comedic experience than Koy and is overall a better comic.
Award shows as a whole should take a step back and try to re-work their formula. They should try a ceremony with and without a host and with a faster pace and there might be some success. Maybe award shows keep this formula for a reason. No matter if something good or bad happens during an award show, it is talked about by the press for months. Award show drama always brings something for the press to talk about and stir drama, so maybe the monotonous award show routine is purposeful. All I know is a lot of people, myself included, choose to tune out award shows and check who won the next morning.
