Emmys Host Kenan Thompson: “A Hug Moment Would Have Stopped” Oscar Slap; Has No Plans To “Go Out There Hurting Anybody’s Feelings”
deadline.comIn a few days Kenan Thompson will host his first Primetime Emmys show, but he’s not afraid of an ‘Oscar slap’, he says.Speaking at an Emmy preview event in LA on Wednesday night, the SNL comic reflected on the infamous physical clash between Oscars host Chris Rock and Will Smith, and on the pitfalls of ‘roasting’ at awards shows in general.“I think a good comic is supposed to be aware,” Thompson said. “I mean I’m not calling Chris a bad comic, he just wasn’t necessarily aware of that situation, so it’s not fair to lump him into that conversation.
But overall those kind of roast-y kind of people, you have to be smart, because you know, there’s a way to jab at people without offending, like for real for real.
I don’t think offense necessarily gets us anywhere as a society.”In July Smith posted an apology video online, but last weekend, during a stand-up show in London, Rock compared that recording to a “hostage video”.
In Thompson’s opinion, that (literally) show-stopping moment could have potentially been quickly resolved .“I feel like a hug moment would have stopped all of that, you know what I’m saying?” Thompson said. “But it was so unfathomable that [Rock] didn’t know that was even coming.
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