Ricky Gervais has hit back at rumors swirling around the Internet that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) was so upset with his saucy performance that they tried to muzzle the Golden Globes host mid-show.
"Obviously the rumour that the organizers stopped me going out on stage for an hour is rubbish. I did every link I was scheduled to do," Gervais blogged.
Show producer Dick Clark Producitons, meanwhile, released a terse statement Monday reading, "Ricky's time on stage as not altered one iota."
The English comedian and "Office" creator said that the reason for the long breaks between appearances was that he personally selected the stars he introduced.
"I obviously chose the spots that I had the best gags for. They couldn't move around the order but I could move around however I wanted," Gervais wrote.
Still, many were amazed by how far Gervais was willing to push his gig. The host spared no one in the room, roasting the HFPA for its reputation for voting for undeserving films (ahem, "The Tourist") in exchange for press junkets and trinkets.
For its part, the HFPA has been magnanimous. While acknowledging that Gervais "occasionally went too far," the group praised his performance in a statement Monday.
"Overall, however, the show was among the best we've ever had and we were pleased," the HFPA said.
Another Hollywood institution that was also the target of Gervais' wit — Hugh Hefner — also shrugged off the Globes' host's jokes about his wedding to 24-year-old Crystal Harris.
"The Golden Globes was a blast. They made fun of everyone, including Crystal & me. A great night," Hefner tweeted.
As for Gervais, he dismissed the controversy around his caustic Globes performance as a case of the media manufacturing a story.
""Why do people have to embellish?" Gervais asked. "Don't worry, I know the answer. Because it's more interesting than "it went fine and some people won some awards and then went to a party". But that's all that happened."
Not that Gervais isn't above fanning the flames.
"So here's what really happened. Bruce Willis and Sly Stallone started a fight with me but Alec Baldwin and Mark Walberg stepped in and helped me out. That's what happened," Gervais wrote.
