HBO host Bill Maher criticized the Academy Award nominations during Friday night’s edition of “Real Time.”
“The Oscars need to change their name to the Debbies,” Bill Maher said. “As in Debbie Downer. Because judging by this year’s best picture nominees, you couldn’t have a worse time with the movies if there was an active shooter in the theater.”
I don’t have to leave the theater whistling, but would it kill Hollywood to once in a while make a movie that doesn’t make me want to take a bath with the toaster? We all had a rough year, a little escapism would have been appreciated. #Oscars21 #OscarNoms pic.twitter.com/UkA3zCOkbl
— Bill Maher (@billmaher) April 10, 2021
Maher described the depressing stories of several of the films.
“A new poll found that less than half of Americans now go to church. They don’t have to. If they want to feel dirty, guilty and bad, they can watch ‘Nomadland.’ That’s the one about the woman who winds up living in her van after her husband dies of cancer.”
“In ‘Judas and the Black Messiah,’ the FBI kills the leader of the Black Panthers and in ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7,’ the FBI kills the leader of the Black Panthers again. ‘Promising Young Woman’ has Carey Mulligan avenging a murderous rapist, but then he kills her too. And she was so close to joining the Black Panthers,” Maher said.
He said “South of Metal” is about a musician going deaf, “The Father” is about an octogenarian descending into dementia, and “Minari” is about a poor Korean immigrants in Arkansas who put their food in a barn, only to be burned by the grandmother.
“The 2021 Oscars brought to you by razor blades, Kleenex and rope,” he said. “Please welcome our host, the sad emoji,” he said. (RELATED: Oscars To Go Hostless Again In 2020)
Bill Maher Performs During New York Comedy Festival at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on November 5, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images)
“Look I don’t have to leave the theater whistling,” Maher said. “But would it kill you once in a while to make a movie that doesn’t want me to take a bath with a toaster?”
“We all had a rough year,” he said. “A little escapism would’ve been appreciated, but your list of movies, it’s like the menu at some stupid, trendy restaurant where all the choices are very impressive, but there’s not one thing I actually want to eat. Where’s the comfort food? What happened to show business? Did they all decide to quit cocaine at the same time?”