Jimmy Kimmel took aim at Harvey Weinstein in his opening monologue at the Academy Awards.
The 50-year-old presenter – who fronted the Oscars for the second year in a row on Sunday (04.03.18) – opened the ceremony with a string of jibes at the expense of the disgraced movie producer, who has been blacklisted from Hollywood following a string of sexual harassment allegations.
He said: "The Academy took action last year to expel Harvey Weinstein from their ranks.
"There were a lot of great nominees, but Harvey deserved it the most."
And Jimmy also joked about the reputation of Hollywood men, insisting they should strive to be more like the Oscar statuette.
He quipped: "Oscar is the most beloved and respected man in Hollywood, and there’s a very good reason why. Just look at him.
"Keeps his hands where you can see them, never says a rude word, and most importantly, no penis at all. He is literally a statue of limitations, and that’s the kind of men we need more of in this town."
And the presenter admitted the reforms that had come in Hollywood since the Weinstein scandal broke hadn’t come soon enough.
He said: "What happened with Harvey and what’s happening all over was long overdue. We can’t let bad behaviour slide any more. The world is watching us."
But despite the serious subject, Jimmy wasn’t afraid to use humour.
He added: "We need to set an example and the truth is if we are successful here, if we can work together to stop sexual harassment in the workplace, women will only have to deal with harassment all the time at every other place they go."
And referencing ‘The Shape of Water’ – which sees a cleaning lady fall in love with a mysterious river creature – he quipped: "We will always remember this year as the year men screwed up so badly that women started dating fish."
Elsewhere at the ceremony, Jimmy surprised cinemagoers at a nearby screening of ‘A Wrinkle in Time’ by interrupting their viewing to bring snacks along with the likes of Armie Hammer, Margot Robbie, Ansel Elgort Lupita Nyong’o, Mark Hamill, and Guillermo del Toro.
The host, along with ‘Wonder Woman’ actress Gal Gadot, first dropped in on the theatre and said: "I have an announcement to make. You are live on the Oscars right now. ‘So we were talking about our appreciation for people who go to the movies and those are you people, so we wanted to say thank you to the moviegoers."
He then brought out the other stars who brought out sweets, hot dogs and a huge 6ft sandwich to feed the crowd.
Jimmy Kimmel takes aim at Harvey Weinstein at Oscars
