There’s only support in this building. Steve Martin offered some kind words for Jo Koy following the divided response to comedian’s jokes during the 2024 Golden Globes.
“I tip my hat to anyone who steps out on stage to host a live awards show,” the 78-year-old wrote on Threads Jan. 9. “It’s a very difficult job and not for the squeamish. I know because I’m still throwing up from the last time I did it in 2010.”
Steve, who last took the stage alongside Alec Baldwin at the 82nd Academy Awards 14 years ago, had a softer approach than others regarding his thoughts on the stand-up comedian’s routine.
“So, Congratulations to Jo Koy,” he continued, “who took on the toughest gig in show business, hit, missed, was light on his feet and now has 20 minutes of new material for his stand up!”
And the Only Murders in the Building star, who was nominated for best television male actor in a musical/comedy series but skipped out on the ceremony, wasn’t the only person to defend Jo.
In fact, another former Oscars host, Whoopi Goldberg noted just how difficult it is to take on the role.
“Hosting gigs are just brutal,” she explained on the Jan. 9 episode of The View. “If you’ve not been in these rooms before and you’re sort of thrust out there, it’s hit or miss.”
Jo, who has previously spoken about being asked to host just a few weeks before the Jan. 7 ceremony, has faced backlash over several of his jokes, with many online expressing frustration at him for taking shots at women and women-led projects during his routine.
The 52-year-old, who first praised Oppenheimer for being based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, noted, “Barbie is on a plastic doll with big boobies.”
As the night went on, many users on social media were quick to call the comedian’s jokes “reductive” and “cheap.”
He also joked that the Golden Globes would have fewer cutaways to Taylor Swift than the NFL-referencing her attendance at boyfriend Travis Kelce’s games-to which she appeared unamused, pointedly sipping her drink.
But Jo knows that some-including those in the room-didn’t find his routine funny, admitting on GMA3 Jan. 8 his joke about the Grammy winner fell “a little flat.”
And while he’s taking the experience in stride, she shared the criticism does hurt a bit.
“I had fun. You know, it was a moment that I’ll always remember,” The Monkey King actor noted. “It’s a tough room. It was a hard job; I’m not going to lie.”
“I’d be lying if it doesn’t hurt,” he continued. “I hit a moment there where I was like, ‘Ah.’ Hosting is just a tough gig. Yes, I’m a stand-up comic but that hosting position it’s a different style. I kind of went in and did the writer’s thing. We had 10 days to write this monologue. It was a crash course.”