Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel had plenty of thoughts on how Al Pacino presented the trophy for Best Picture.
During the 2024 Academy Awards on Sunday, March 10, Pacino, 83, took attendees and viewers by surprise when he took the stage for the final category.
“This is the time for the last award of the evening, and it’s my honor to present it. Ten wonderful films were nominated, but only one will take the award for Best Picture,” Pacino, who was nominated for nine Oscars and won Best Actor in 1993, told the audience at the Dolby Theater. “And I have to go to the envelope for that, and I will. Here it comes. And my eyes see Oppenheimer. Yes. Yes.”
Viewers were quick to point out that Pacino didn’t name every film that was nominated. He also briefly paused after announcing Oppenheimer as the winner, which caused a delay in applause as attendees were waiting for Pacino to say the traditional “And the Oscar goes to” phrase.
After the Oscars, Kimmel, 56, weighed in on the memorable presentation.
“I guess he’s never watched an awards show before,” Kimmel quipped during an appearance on Live With Kelly and Mark on Monday, March 11. “It seems like everyone in America knows the rhythm of how it’s supposed to go, down to ‘And the Oscar goes to…’ but not Al.”
Pacino’s appearance wasn’t the only part of the night that had fans talking. Kimmel also came under fire for several comments from his opening monologue.
“This is the highest point of Robert Downey Jr.’s long and illustrious career. Well, one of the highest points,” Kimmel said about the Oppenheimer star, 58, who has been outspoken about his history with addiction. Downey, who has been sober for more than 20 years, tapped his nose when the camera panned to him.
“Was it too on the nose or was that a drug motion you made?” Kimmel asked. Downey motioned for him to wrap up the joke. “Well, look at this guy, he’s so handsome and talented, he’s won every award there is to win … and is that an acceptance speech or do you just have a very rectangular penis?”
Many viewers took to social media to call out Kimmel for bringing up Downey Jr.’s past issues with substance abuse prior to the star’s Best Supporting Actor win. The monologue continued to ruffle feathers after clips from several nominated movies played on the screen.
“Those were all the parts of Poor Things that we’re allowed to show on TV,” Kimmel said in reference to the numerous sex scenes in Poor Things, which Emma Stone starred in and executive produced.
Mark Ruffalo, who costarred in the movie, laughed at the joke, while Stone, 35, was caught rolling her eyes before turning to her husband, Dave McCary, to say something. In response to the viral moment, viewers became amateur lip readers as they tried to decipher what Stone may have said about Kimmel.
Fans initially thought Stone said, “Oh my God.” However, others have since questioned whether Stone actually called Kimmel “a prick” for his dig.
