Jimmy Kimmel Takes On Bad Men In Hollywood (And Elsewhere) In Oscar Opener

The comedian specifically called out and celebrated the Me Too, Time's Up, and Never Again movements.
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Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue at the 90th Annual Academy Awards on Sunday night dove headfirst into poking fun at last year’s envelope fiasco and moved into commentary on the Me Too, Time’s Up, and Never Again movements.

“This year when you hear your name called, don’t get up right away. Just give us a minute. We don’t want another ’thing,’” Kimmel joked before elaborating on what really happened at last year’s ceremony.

“Last year, about a week before the show, the producers asked me if I wanted to do some comedy with the accountants. I said ‘No, I don’t want to do comedy with the accountants.’ So then the accountants went ahead and did comedy on their own,” Kimmel said.

The late-night host joked that Oscar (the statue) is the “most beloved and respected man in Hollywood.”

“There’s a very good reason why. Look at him,” Kimmel said. “He keeps his hands where you can see them. Never says a rude word. And most importantly, he has no penis. He is literally a statue of limitations.” The host added a beat later that Oscar is “the kind of man we need more of in this town.”

Kimmel elaborated on Hollywood’s treatment of women by assailing Mel Gibson for the second year in a row and discussing the disparity between Mark Wahlberg’s and Michelle Williams’ reshoot fee for “All the Money in the World.”

“Here’s how clueless Hollywood is about women. We made a movie called ‘What Women Want’ and it starred Mel Gibson,” Kimmel said.

He went on to talk about how the industry can no longer let bad behavior slide.

“We need to set an example ... Things are changing for the better. This is a night for positivity,” the comedian said.

In that vein, Kimmel implored the winners of the night to keep their speeches brief but impassioned, using their platform to support causes like Me Too, Time’s Up, and Never Again.

“If you want to encourage people to join the amazing students at Parkland for their march on the 24th, do that,” he said, just before announcing that whomever gives the shortest speech of the night would receive a new Jet Ski.

The watercraft was presented by Helen Mirren (not included).

Prior to Kimmel’s speech, there was a pan over the audience shot in black-and-white, which featured a plethora of stars. One notable bit featured a really uncomfortable shot of Salma Hayek with her “date” ― the fish man from “The Shape of Water.”

Last year, Kimmel started the award show talking about the divisiveness within the United States, bashing Trump, and explaining how to actually make America great again.

The lack of overt political commentary in this year’s monologue is surprising considering Kimmel’s stance on causes like health care, but he still couldn’t resist at least one solid dig at the vice president.

“We don’t make movies like ‘Call Me By Your Name’ to make money,” he said while discussing the film, centered around a relationship between two men over a summer in Italy. “We make them to upset Mike Pence.”

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