“SNL” head writers Michael Che and Colin Jost brought their late-night sketch comedy chops Monday to the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards, spending their opening stint as hosts of the award show dunking on Roseanne Barr and making jokes about #MeToo.
Che and Jost are best known as the co-hosts of Weekend Update on “Saturday Night Live,” a job they’ve held for the past four seasons. They spend most of that segment each week rapid-firing jokes in headlines and story summaries. More than a few of the jokes have been pretty overtly political over the last two seasons, with the two hosts blasting Donald Trump, first as a candidate in the 2016 presidential election, and then as president.
The hosts have drawn mixed reactions since the announcement that they’d be leading the Emmys. In the era of the #MeToo movement that has seen many powerful men in Hollywood accused of sexual harassment and other infractions, the pair have been accused of regressive jokes and an inability to take criticism. Che recently was criticized for seeming to defend Louis C.K., who admitted masturbating in front of women comedians, and Jost has been accused of making a transphobic joke two years ago during a Weekend update segment.
The Emmys actually started with another pair of “SNL” actors — Kenan Thompson and Kate McKinnon — who kicked things off a song about the Emmys this year are the most diverse ever. “We solved it,” McKinnon and Thompson sang, referring to Hollywood’s problem with diversity, in a number that featured Sterling K. Brown, Kristen Bell, Titus Burgess, Ricky Martin, Andy Samberg, RuPaul and John Legend.
Here’s a smattering of the very best gags from Che and Jost’s turn as Emmy hosts.
“It is an honor to be here, sharing this night with the many, many talented and creative people in Hollywood who haven’t been caught yet,” Che joked, referring to the many people in Hollywood who have been accused of sexual impropriety.
“This year the audience is allowed to drink in their seats, because the one thing Hollywood needs right now is people losing their inhibitions at a work function,” Jost said, continuing the riff on #MeToo.
“If you’re a network executive, that’s the scariest thing you could possibly hear, other than ‘Sir, Ronan Farrow is on Line 1,'” said Jost, after talking about how Netflix, a contender at the Emmys, was adding more original programming to its streaming service.
“Speaking of sad, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ is nominated,” Che said. “I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ takes place in a future where an entire group of people are forced to work and make babies against their will. It’s what black people call ‘history.’ “
Talking about Laurie Metcalf’s Emmy nomination for Outsanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for “Roseanne,” Che quipped, “You know how great an actress you have to be to get nominated for ‘Roseanne’ now? That’s like a cop being nominated for a BET award. It doesn’t happen!”
“The Obamas now even have their own production deal at Netflix. And my dream is the only thing they produce is their own version of ‘The Apprentice,’ and it gets way higher ratings,” Jost said.
Talking about a new slate diverse shows and reboots coming to TV soon, Jost said, “It’s gonna get balanced out by an all-white reboot of ‘Atlanta’ called ’15 Miles Outside of Atlanta.’ And it focuses on white women who call the police on the cast of ‘Atlanta.'”
10 Stars Who Just Need an Emmy to EGOT, From Elton John to Stephen Sondheim (Photos)
The EGOT -- an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony -- is among the greatest and most elusive honors in entertainment. These stars are (or were) close to achieving it.
Henry Fonda, actor (1905-82) Grammy: Best Spoken Word Album, "Great Documents" (1977) Oscar: Best Actor, "On Golden Pond" (1981) Tony: Best Actor, "Mister Roberts" (1948); Best Actor, "Clarence Darrow" (1975)
Elton John, composer and musician (1947-) Grammy: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group, "That's What Friends Are For" (1986); Best Instrumental Composition, "Basque" (1991); Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (1994); Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, "Candle in the Wind" (1997); Best Show Album, "Aida" (2000) Oscar: Best Original Son, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from "The Lion King" (1994) Tony: Best Score, "Aida" (2000)
Oscar Hammerstein II, lyricist and producer (1895-1960) Grammy: Best Original Cast Album, "The Sound of Music" (1960) Oscar: Best Original Song, "The Last Time I Saw Paris" from "Lady Be Good" (1941); "It Might As Well Be Spring" from "State Fair" (1945) Tony: Three awards for "South Pacific" (1950); Best Musical, "The King and I" (1952); Best Musical, "The Sound of Music" (1960)
Stephen Sondheim, composer and lyricist (1930-) Grammy: Best Show Album, "Company" (1970); Best Show Album, "A Little Night Music" (1973); Song of the Year, "Send in the Clowns" (1975); Best Show Album, "Sweeney Todd" (1979); Best Show Album, "Sunday in the Park With George" (1984); Best Cast Show Album, "Into the Woods" (1988); Best Show Album, "Passion" (1994); Oscar: Best Original Song, "Sooner Or Later (I Always Get My Man)" from "Dick Tracy" (1990) Tony: Best Musical, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," (1963); Best Score and Best Lyrics, "Company" (1971); Best Score, "Follies" (1972); Best Score, "A Little Night Music" (1973); Best Score, "Sweeney Todd" (1979); Best Score, "Into the Woods" (1988); Best Score, "Passion" (1994)
Alan Jay Lerner, lyricist and writer (1918-86) Grammy: Best Original Cast Album, "On a Clear Day" (1965) Oscar: Best Original Screenplay, "An American in Paris" (1951); Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Song, "Gigi" (1958) Tony: Best Musical, "My Fair Lady" (1957); Best Original Score, "Gigi" (1974)
Frank Loesser, composer (1910-69) Grammy: Best Cast Album, "How to Succeed..." (1961) Oscar: Best Song, "Baby, It's Cold Outside" from "Neptune's Daughter" (1949) Tony: Best Musical, "Guys and Dolls" (1951); Best Musical, "How to Succeed..." (1962)
Alan Menken, composer (1949-) Grammy: Best Recording for Children and Song for TV or Film, "The Little Mermaid" (1990); Best Recording for Children, Song for TV or Film, Instrumental for TV or Film, "Beauty and the Beast" (1992); Song of the Year, "A Whole New World," Best Recording for Children, Song for TV or Film, Instrumental for TV or Film, "Aladdin" (1993); Best Song for TV or Film, "Colors of the Wind" (1995); Best Song for Visual Medium, "I See the Light" (2011) Oscar: Best Score and Song, "The Little Mermaid" (1989); Best Score and Song, "Beauty and the Beast" (1991); Best Score and Song, "Aladdin" (1992); Best Score and Song, "Pocahontas" (1995) Tony: Best Score, "Newsies" (2012)
Jule Styne, composer and songwriter (1905-94) Grammy: Best Cast Album, "Funny Girl" (1964) Oscar: Best Song, "Three Coins in the Fountain" (1954) Tony: Best Musical and Best Score, "Hallelujah Baby" (1968)
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, composers (both 1985 - ) Grammy: Best Musical Theater Album, "Dear Evan Hansen" (2018) Oscar: Best Original Song, "La La Land" (2017) Tony: Best Original Score, "Dear Evan Hansen" (2017)
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A select group of entertainers can round out their trophy cases with a competitive win from the Television Academy
The EGOT -- an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony -- is among the greatest and most elusive honors in entertainment. These stars are (or were) close to achieving it.
