The late-night comedian tackled buzzy headlines — ranging from the Hollywood strikes to the Oscar-nominated ”Barbenheimer” powerhouse duo — as he returned for the fourth time to host the industry’s biggest night . He also had “Oppenheimer” star and Oscar nominee Robert Downey Jr. in his sights.
“This is the highest point of Robert Downey Jr.’s long and illustrious career,” Kimmel said, “or one of the highest points.”
The camera quickly panned to the three-time nominee, who has been open about his previous struggles with drug addiction. Downey tapped on his nose, to which Kimmel responded: “Is it too on the nose? Or is that a drug motion he made?”
In response to an underwhelming joke from Kimmel about his body, Downey encouraged the comedian to wrap up the gag, making a fishing motion.
During his opener, Kimmel addressed “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig’s snub, took a dig at Sony’s “Madame Web” and provided a spotlight for “Anatomy of a Fall” dog actor Messi, who caused a stir in Oscar publicist circles days before the ceremony.
With more digs at best picture nominees “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper, Kimmel’s monologue Sunday was less pointed than his opener from the 2023 ceremony. Last year he addressed Oscar winner Will Smith‘s controversial slap during the 2022 show. “We want you to feel safe,” he quipped last year, “and most importantly, we want me to feel safe.”
The longtime ABC host — whose Oscars hosting tenure included that infamous best picture envelope debacle in 2017 — concluded his monologue by addressing the months-long writers’ and actors’ strikes in 2023 that brought production and promotion of film and television projects to a halt.
For months, the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA negotiated with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to address several pressing issues, including residuals and the growing use of artificial intelligence in the entertainment industry. The writers’ strike ended in late September 2023, and the actors’ strike ended in early November 2023.
“We can be proud of the fact that this long and difficult work stoppage taught us that this very strange town of ours, as pretentious and superficial as it can be, at its heart is a union town,” Kimmel said.
He added: “It’s not just a bunch of heavily botoxed, Hailey Bieber smoothie-drinking… nepo babies with perpetually shivering Chihuahuas. This is a coalition of strong, hardworking, mentally tough American laborers. Women and men who would 100% for sure die if we even had to touch the handle of a shovel.”
Crew workers then joined Kimmel for the final moments of his monologue. As the Oscars audience rose to their feet, Kimmel vowed to show solidarity for the below-the-line workers as they undergo bargaining.
“We will stand with you too,” he said.
Leading up to the Academy Awards, Kimmel admitted to The Times, “I did not think I would ever do [host the Oscars] again.”
“I did two of them, and they went well — something crazy happened at one of them with a story I’ll have for the rest of my life,” he said in an interview published last month. “I know how much work goes into them, so I thought, ‘Yeah, I don’t necessarily want to do this ever again.’”
Swaying him to return were projects including “Barbie,” a popular film that led much of the cultural conversation last year and earned Oscar cred as the Greta Gerwig-helmed film, one half of the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon, was up for eight categories. And Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer, which was nominated for 13 prizes to lead this year’s back of Oscar contenders. Both films are in the running for the marquee best picture award.
“‘Well, maybe I’ll do this again, because at least I have a point of reference with everyone,’” Kimmel said.
The 96th Academy Awards aired live on ABC from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.