Another year… another Oscars ceremony… another predictable jab at Trump and the conservartive movement.
It didn’t take long for this year’s hostless ceremony to descend into political landmines.
Brad Pitt immediately brought up politics during his acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actor, but not everyone appreciated the jab.
USA Today reports:
Pitt took home the first award of the night. “Wow,” he said, “This is really incredible.”
He got a little political, saying the 45 seconds he had for his acceptance speech was 45 more seconds than John Bolton had to speak at President Trump’s impeachment trial. He thanked writer/director Quentin Tarantino and co-star Leonardo DiCaprio, telling Leo he’d “ride on your coattails any day.” Pitt gave a shout out to stunt crews, adding, “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, ain’t that the truth?” Pitt ended his speech by dedicating the win to his kids, “I adore you.”
Over the years, while fans were busy being enamored with his Sexiest Man Alive looks and high-profile love life (from former girlfriend Gwyneth Paltrow to A-list ex-wives Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie), Pitt sneakily built an ace character actor’s resume. He was Oscar-nominated for playing a socially conscious mental patient (“12 Monkeys”), a man aging backward (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”) and an innovative baseball general manager (“Moneyball”), which fit right in with his roles as a two-fisted incomprehensible Irishman, anarchist soap salesman, right-hand heist man, married assassin (twice), infamous outlaw, Greek warrior, World War II tank commander, scalping Nazi hunter, troubled astronaut, seductive vampire and Death.
Fans took to Twitter to express their disappointment. One even quipped she thought that Brad Pitt had “brains as well as looks.”
The more that performers like Brad Pitt talk about politics, the less the general public wants to watch the self-absorbed awards.
This year's Oscars scored the lowest ratings ever.
Decider reports:
The 2020 Oscars were watched by the smallest audience the awards show has ever received.
23.6 million viewers tuned in on Sunday night to see Parasite sweep to a surprise victory.
Last year’s Oscars delivered a 7.7 rating in adults 18-49 and 29.6 million viewers in the time zone adjusted fast national ratings. That viewership figure, while up 12% from 2018, represented the second smallest audience ever for an Academy Awards telecast. 2018 delivered the smallest ever with 26.5 million viewers.
News of the decline isn’t entirely surprising, as awards show numbers in general have been in decline over the past few years. For instance, the 2020 Golden Globes dipped 2% on 2019 to eight-year viewership low, while the 2019 Emmys was the lowest-rated and least-watched in the show’s history, a refrain that is becoming all too familiar when discussing award show ratings lately.
Sorry, Brad Pitt.. guess your words fell on deaf ears... Or actually, hardly any ears at all.
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