The 2017 Oscars opened up with a hilarious bang when host Jimmy Kimmel’s opening monologue made some playful jabs at Oscars attendees, including his longtime “frenemy,” actor Matt Damon. The jokes were political, hilarious and altogether a perfect way to kick off the evening.
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Damon was one of the many targets Kimmel took aim at during his (hopefully) soon-to-be iconic opening monologue. Damon and Kimmel have a longstanding “feud,” playful in nature but definitely always ready to get reheated when the occasion calls for it. In Kimmel’s monologue, he spoke about America healing the political divide by coming together with those who have different views from each other. He soon quipped, “Now, Matt — I’ve known Matt for a long time…. When I first met Matt, I was the fat one.” Hoo boy, that’s some good shade, y’all.
But Kimmel wasn’t done yet. “Matt, as you know, could have starred in Manchester by the Sea,” he went on. “He made a Chinese ponytail movie instead.” Kimmel was referencing Damon’s recent action flick The Great Wall, which has not had quite the critical success that Manchester has recently received.
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Another absolutely hilarious jab Kimmel got was, again, more in the lighthearted vein than the outwardly cruel. Kimmel moved from Damon to iconic actor Meryl Streep. Well, to most, Streep is iconic; to Kimmel, she was “overrated,” which was a now-jokey callback to President Donald Trump’s comments about Streep following her incisive speech at the 2017 Golden Globes.
“We’re also here to honor the actors that seem great but actually really aren’t. And of all the ‘great’ actors, here in Hollywood, one in particular has stood the test of time for her many uninspiring and overrated performances. From her mediocre early work in The Deer Hunter and Out of Africa to her underwhelming performances in Kramer vs. Kramer and Sophie’s Choice, Meryl Streep has phoned it in from more than 50 films over the course of her lackluster career. The highly overrated Meryl Streep, everyone,” Kimmel finished, and encouraged everyone to stand up and applaud her.
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Kimmel absolutely nailed his opening monologue. And those jabs? A truly tasty cherry on top.
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