You didn't think Jimmy Kimmel would let the 2023 Oscars go by without a slap joke, would you?
How about ... a lot of slap jokes?
This year's Oscars host opened the show with a witty monologue that included quips about Nicole Kidman's oft-parodied AMC commercial and Tom Cruise's Scientology connection. But he also went heavy on zingers about the shocking moment from the 2022 Oscars, in which Will Smith walked onto the stage and slapped presenter Chris Rock for joking about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
"We know this is a special night for you. We want you to have fun. We want you to feel safe. And most importantly, we want me to feel safe," Kimmel, 55, began on Sunday night. "So we have strict policies in place. If anyone in this theater commits an act of violence at any point during the show, you will be awarded the Oscar for Best Actor and permitted to give a 19-minute-long speech."
Continuing, Kimmel took a moment to jokingly call out those who were present last year when the slap went down. "Seriously, The Academy has a crisis team in place. If anything unpredictable or violent happens during the ceremony. Just do what you did last year: nothing," he said. "Sit there and do absolutely nothing. Maybe even give the assailant a hug."
Kimmel added that for those who "get mad at a joke and decide you want to get jiggy with it, it's not going to be easy" this go round.
"There are a few my friends are going to have to get through first," he said, before shouting out some stars' tough characters, including Pedro Pascal's titular Mandalorian character, Michelle Yeoh's Evelyn Wang from Everything Everywhere All at Once and Michael B. Jordan's Adonis Creed from Creed.
Later in the night when introducing presenters for Best Documentary Feature, Kimmel deadpanned, "Hopefully it goes off this time without a hitch, or at least without Hitch," a nod to Smith's 2005 rom-com. "Please put your hands together and then keep them to yourself."
As the awards marched toward the two-hour mark, Kimmel returned to the stage, asking with a chuckle, "At this point in the show, it kind of makes you miss the slapping a little bit, right?"
And at the close of the show, after Everything Everywhere All at Once won Best Picture, Kimmel threw in one last jab. "Great work, crisis team," he joked, wrapping up the broadcast.
He then walked offstage, where he updated a sign that read "Number of Oscars Telecasts Without Incident" to read "001."
Following Smith's outburst in 2022, the actor went on to win Best Actor for King Richard and deliver an emotional speech — though did not address Rock.
He has since apologized to the comedian and resigned from being a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The Academy also banned him from attending its events for 10 years.
Rock recently addressed the moment in his live Netflix special Selective Outrage, saying in part, "Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face."
The Oscars aired live from Los Angeles's Dolby Theatre on ABC.
