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Ricky Gervais Will Return to Host (and Roast) the Golden Globes
The British comedian, notorious for his awards-show mockery, will serve as M.C. of the show for a fifth and, he says, final time.
The Oscars proved this year that you can pull off an awards ceremony without a host. But why would the more freewheeling Golden Globes pass on personality?
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced Tuesday that Ricky Gervais will return to host the Globes, which NBC is broadcasting on Jan. 5. This represents the British comedian’s fifth stint as M.C., a Globes record.
“Once again, they’ve made me an offer I can’t refuse,” Gervais said in a statement, though he added, “This is the very last time I’m doing this, which could make for a fun evening.
Gervais first hosted the Globes in 2010, and became known for turning a normally self-congratulatory night into something of a roast. That year, he brought a half-drunk beer onstage and took potshots at Mel Gibson before introducing him; during his last turn as M.C., in 2016, Gervais once again made fun of Gibson to his face and introduced Matt Damon as “the only person Ben Affleck hasn’t been unfaithful to.”
This season’s Golden Globe nominations won’t be announced until Dec. 9, but they’re expected to include the A-list likes of Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jennifer Lopez, who should all prove irresistible targets for Gervais’s star-puncturing sense of humor. But will the frisson around Gervais’s return prompt the Oscars to name their own host, or will the show go another year without an M.C.?
Whatever the case, expect Gervais to make fun of them, too.
Kyle Buchanan, a Los Angeles-based pop culture reporter, writes the Carpetbagger column. He was previously a senior editor at Vulture, New York Magazine's entertainment website, where he covered the movie industry. More about Kyle Buchanan
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