Following his brilliant torrent of insults and jabs at the 2011 Golden Globes, Ricky Gervais made a few proclamations. One, he didn't think anyone was offended by what he said. Two, he didn't care if they were offended. Three, he had been already asked back for a third time by the HFPA. Four, he wouldn't be returning.
It's hard to verify the accuracy of the first three, but the fourth one ended up being a false prophesy. As announced Wednesday, Gervais is back. And he's promising to go even harder this time.
In a new blog post, Gervais explains that returning for another hosting turn was a difficult decision, but he finally decided to go ahead with it to strike back at those who doubted him.
"What actually tipped the balance and made me say yes, was the fact that it would shut up all those f--king idiots who said that I'd never be invited back," he wrote. "Is that the wrong reason to do something? Ha ha. I think it is."
That being said, now that he is returning, it looks like he'll try to make sure he won't be back for a fourth year.
"Now here's the thing. The outrage I caused was of course, as usual, totally out of proportion to the things I said. I don't think anyone had any right to be offended but they were," he continued. "This year I'm going to make sure their offence is completely justified. The best thing about it is writing the gags. I love writing one liners. Particularly when they can't be used in any other context. It gives them a special weight on the night if you know what I mean."
Of course, he promised he wouldn't be asked back before the last show, so perhaps we can expect to see the comedian go for a fourth straight turn in 2013.