I Sat Through The Oscars So You Don’t Have To | Episode 152

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1:22Always some sort of meaning we could extract from these big social events. So what you need to know is that this show was completely met. What did I watch? It was relatively apolitical, much to the disappointment of thirsty journalist and conservative commentators everywhere who were sitting ready to watch, ready to be outraged about everything, but it also wasn't entertaining. Nothing about it was fun, like these are professional entertainers. They are being awarded for being the best in the business, and yet I struggled. I was painfully struggled to squeeze out a chuckle at various points of the show. But more than anything, and this is really what I want to talk about today, is that I think it showed how far behind Hollywood is in the entire media and entertainment landscape and why they are still struggling every day to relate to my generation. Now before we dive into all of that, and I tell you what I actually did think was kind of funny, if you want to see behind the scenes content, everything from baby cows being born to me taking my husband to Costco for the first time, then make sure you check out CooperCompadential.com, that is our subscription platform that we built from the ground up for you guys, and that is where all of that BTS fun stuff happens.

2:24Diving into this, I just have to say, I think my vlogs are far more entertaining than what we saw last night, Sunday night, on our television. So before we get into my whole take about what I think Conan O'Brien was trying to communicate throughout the entire performance and what jokes he kept going back to, I just want to give you my overview thoughts, and number one, and I think this might be the most important one. Sprintly, must cut back the time allotted to the presenters. I mean, it was painful, to the painful. You have like all of these award winning actors and actresses, and they're on stage, and it's just like, I was sitting there on the couch like, oh my god, please get off the screen, because it just wasn't funny. And yet they were so desperately attempting to be funny, it would be one thing if they just all got on stage. It was very meaningful and nice and serious, and they moved on. But most of them were trying to do like this, trying to be funny, and it just fell flat. Every single time, some of them were also just way too long, like they were introducing a new category, a new category for casting directors, which was really nice, and they wanted to give it the time that it deserved, and I respected that, but they had an actor from every single movie that a casting director was being nominated for, and every actor on

3:28stage then spent like three minutes talking about the casting director was nominated. So by the time you got to the fifth movie, you're like, oh my god, it's been like 10 minutes of talking about these casting directors, and I'm so excited that you're nominated, like it's great that it's a new category, but like, I've got a baby to put to bed. We've got, you know, the big five categories that haven't even started yet, and we're sitting here talking about this still. It was just too much, like the only one that I actually thought was funny was this little bit that Ann Hathaway and Anna Wentour did when they presented together. They were doing, I think, the costume and makeup awards, and they did, like, a little devil wears Prada bit, because in Hathaway, starring Universe, Prada 2, that's coming out this year, and obviously it's connected to Anna Wentour, and it is insane to me, like this should be Red Flag warning sign that Anna Wentour has better comedic timing than the professional actors and actresses. And she didn't even say anything. All she did was just do her Anna Wentour looking across the audience, judged, she put her sunglasses on at the right moment, she said a funny line, that was it, and it was funnier than anything anybody else did, seriously, just have to say. Everyone else was way too rehearsed, they were way too excited about the jokes they were

4:28going to be reading on the teleprompter, was stiff, the timing, and pacing was just terrible, not it. Alright, so that is my number one complaint. I was over the presenters. Now, number two, like I said in the intro, there was an obvious lack of political pandering, like Conan took kind of a couple shots, but it was like soft on, Conan's never really like the most political of like the late night guys, they were comparatively mild compared to the things that, you know, a Jimmy Kimmel or a Jimmy Fallon usually says, and most of the people who won those big five awards, like, you know, best picture, best screenplay, best actor, best actress, they thanked their mamas and god, or producers, which in their mind is the same thing. It's god, I'm sure, but that was essentially it, no Iran, no ice, no Trump, nothing, just producers, and their mothers, now what I did think was interesting though, is that while that big five category, they steered clear of that. The people winning in the lesser categories, I feel really bad saying less aren't low, a better way to describe that, but the categories that are not the big five, it was them that had the most pandering, like I don't know if they were trying to, you know, pay their dues or create some viral moment or whatever it was, but they were the ones doing most of the talking, like, for example, K-pop demon hunters, which, and I don't want to say

5:30that this was a smaller film, but again, it's not just one of the big five awards, but they won for best animated picture, and the creator of K-pop demon hunters got on stage to celebrate winning as a Korean, and apologize to Koreans everywhere that it took so long for someone who looked like them to win an award of this caliber, like, lighting! Korean Top 1 Before, Asian Top 1 plenty of times, like, didn't you forget that back in 2020, the movie parasite swept the Oscars, honestly, swept every single award show, was a Korean film, Korean director, producer, he won best director, I believe, like, did you just forget that? Are you so self-important that you think you're the first Korean who has ever done anything that you're paving the way for Asians everywhere, like, seriously, like, piped out? It is nauseating! And then, on top of that, and this might have been my favorite, or, you know, worst, least favorite political moment of the entire show, but you had the team from Best Live Action Short Film, and they got on stage, and oh my god, it was like, the political reign descended down from the heavens, and they were talking about how it was so amazing that their queer short film won, and how it was produced by all women, and it was so amazing!

6:30And then this is just, like, karma maybe or something, but they had taken up a lot of their time on stage, talking about how queer it was, how amazing it was, and how it was all women, and then the one guy on stage really wanted to, like, edges way into, like, make a comment, and it was right on the heels of the woman saying that it was, like, a woman-produced film, and they shut down the lights, and the microphone started descending from the stage, like, the moment that the man wanted to start speaking, they cut over to Conan. And so Conan was just standing there, and he was watching, and he was like, oh, I don't know, they're so kind of talking, and this man, this man was like, I'm not leaving. I ain't leaving, I have a political thing I want to say, and so the Oscars, they literally like put a slowly pan back over to him, the lights went back on, the microphone slowly came back on the stage, and I was like, okay, you know, is he going to say something really profound, is he want to, you know, get somebody die, is there, like, an emotional thing that he really wants to get across? No. This man, after all of a sudden, it's, like, 35 seconds of awkwardness, he gets a part of the microphone, and he turns around, and he lists off the genealogy of all of the other women on stage in his own genealogy to celebrate how diverse the crew is on this

7:31short film. We spent all of this time, we raised the microphone back up for that, like, sir, get off the stage, goodbye. Nobody cares that you're a Polish-American immigrant, winning it like seriously. It is just snooze fast, get off stage, and then you had the winner of Best Documentary, they made a lot of political statements as well, they were talking about Putin, they were like, they were talking about Trump, but you know what, I give them a pass because obviously it's a documentary. It was a political documentary that they made about Russian politics, so if they want to talk about Putin, if they want to talk about Trump, that's more in their lane, that's their progative to do so. Anyway, even though I'm complaining about those things, that was basically it. Like, in the grand scheme of the night, in the grand scheme of the red carpet, that was basically all. Very a political boring, sorry to say, I'm not really outraged, I'm like, fun of people, but like, I'm not outraged, I'm not like more like, concerned about them right now. Like, it's just, it was a nothing burger, which is probably good because I think the New York Times will actually be outraged enough for all of us because, guys, even before the

8:33Oscars took place, they released an article telling actors to go out on stage and not be complicit and to go off on Trump to go yell at Trump. Guys, they released this article three days ago. The day before the Oscars, it had not happened yet, they had nothing to be angry about. For all we knew, every single actor was going to get on stage, talk about a rant, ice, whatever it is. And they were preemptively saying, it's not political enough, what other planet are you living on? Anyway, I don't want to read you an excerpt from this because it is seriously so crazy, but the headline reads, Oscar winners, will you be complicit like seriously? Get a grip. Anyway, just listen to this because it seriously is like, we live on two different planets. Alright, so this author writes, actors are used to saying things other people have written for them, but right now it matters a lot whether they can find the right words themselves. Opportunism is contagious, but so is courage. The question is not whether actors should become politicians, but whether citizen who happen to be very visible will at a decisive moment refuse to play the role that every authoritarian leader assigns them decorative proof that all is well.

9:34On a night when the world is watching, a few clear words will not save the republic, but their absence may help end it. I mean, guys, like, when have we ever had celebrities shut up? When have celebrities ever not found the words and only stuck to the script? Like, what delusional reality are you living in? Like, did you preemptively hear the people were not going to be making political statements? Was there some sort of men that went out that we are not privy to? I don't understand writing this article and it not being satire. Somebody commented and said, I was just thinking, you know what the Oscars have been missing for the last decade? Insane political rants from people living in a fantasy world, kudos to the New York Times on calling Hollywood out, but hate to see them miss this opportunity. In other words, instead of 100% facts, the New York Times is worried that Hollywood isn't leftist enough. Is that even possible? Those must be wisening up if reporters have to beg them to act out in public. True. Again, very little politics. The third point that I want to make, and I know I'm like doing all of these the sides. I didn't expect to rant this much, but it just kind of the power came into me and now I just have a lot to talk about. And then I'll actually get into what I have to say about Conan.

10:36But the last thing I'll say is that I watched the Oscars and I did not watch any of the films. Like, usually I've seen one or two, and I will say, like, a decade ago, eight to ten years ago, guys, I watched every single film. I was still an actor in the union at that point. I would get all the screeners. I would watch all of them. My friends and I would have Oscar parties with, like, specially made little hors d'oeuvres and appetizers that were kind of linked and had names that were in line with all the different movies. I knew who the directors were. I even knew, like, producers and writers, and we would have, like, polls and prizes and games and all that stuff. And this year I was like, okay, Marty Supreme, Christmas Day, like, that was essentially all I knew. I knew about sinners just because of the BAFTA awards, everybody being upset at the racist remarks made about Michael B. Jordan and Del Rey Lindo, and so the point I'm making is that I had no skin in the game. But I will say I do think it's interesting that the film won battle after another swept all of the major awards, because just from my perspective, like, outside looking at on social media, it was clear that Marty Supreme and sinners had the biggest Oscar campaigns, like, they were putting money behind getting these films nominated, getting them in front

11:38of all of the audiences. Like, you were either in, like, two camps. Marty Supreme or sinners, like, they were going to sweep the awards, and then you had this dark course won battle after another. I had not even heard of the film until last night. I, and, otherwise, did not know that Leonardo DiCaprio was nominated for Best Actor until his face popped up on screen. Like, that is how disconnected I am. And so, honestly, it does make me happy that they won because I think that means that it was actually a good film because they were not either spending millions and millions of dollars on social media campaigns. Like, I guess people in the academy actually thought it was a good film, so that's great. But my not knowing about it, I don't know if that says more about me or it says more about the relevance of Hollywood, which now brings me to the main point that I want to talk about in regards to Conan and his hosting and what I think the message of the entire Oscars show was. Because, in my opinion, all of you guys felt this, but there was a very obvious through line that Conan O'Brien as the host kept coming back to, and that fact was that the world is changing in Hollywood, is totally disconnected, and that they have very quickly fallen behind. Which, shock at the century, I can't believe they finally got it, they finally realized

12:38that. But that's what he kept hammering into. And honestly, the part of the show and Conan brought all of that up were actually the funniest to me because they felt honest. They were kind of self-deprecating, they were self-aware, which in my opinion, makes for the best comedy. Like, that's, you know, what I enjoy. And, you know, like, so for example, I just want to go through a couple of these, but right out of the gate, in his opening monologue, Conan joked about how next year some AI robot was going to be hosting the Oscars, and you know, obviously he might not be wrong. AI was a big topic of discussion throughout the night, and then immediately from there, he jumped into a roast of the Netflix CEO who's attending the Oscars for the first time, and I have to say, I literally was cackling out loud. This was the hardest that I left in the entire show. Just watched this whole little interaction. Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos is here, and this is exciting. It's his first time in a theater. And that's it. This is what they're talking about. Why are they all together enjoying themselves? They should be home alone. Where I cannot advertise it.

13:41Like, it was so simple. I don't know if you guys find that. It's funny, as I do, but like it was 20 seconds, and it was funny. It's funny because it's true. That man, Mr. Netflix, whatever his name is, his platform, he lives rent-free in Hollywood's minds, whether they are trying to figure out how to fight him and fight his influence or whether they're pushing everybody to get on board and to innovate so that they can all be in the age of streaming, like to be there, like that was the basis of Timothy's opera and ballet comments before everybody decided to take them out of context and decided that it was like a worst atrocity, and that's the thing that everybody has been talking about. And to his credit, Mr. Netflix, you don't took the jokes like a champ, and honestly impressed that he was even at the show where he's invited to begin with, because I feel like that by Doppie is crowd based on how everybody seems to feel about streaming in Hollywood. But again, it just shows how much things are changing. Now, another big change that Conan reference are at the show is that starting in 2029, the Oscars are going to be officially and exclusively streaming right here on YouTube. Hello, my fellow YouTubers, this is where the Oscars are going to be taking place. And this is part of the Academy's and honestly Hollywood at large. They're pushed to finally join us in the age of streaming and social media.

14:44Now, this is happening in 2029. Will they be nine years too late? Probably. They should have done this in like 2022, but at least they're doing it. And Conan had a skit ready to go just for that. Starting in 2029, did you know this, instead of ABC, the Oscars are going to air solely on YouTube? Yeah, it's the future. Yes. This is a big change. Some people are worried this will change how the Oscars are viewed. But I've been assured that there will be no- There's too much for being pro-tactical, but the 20500 moments of brightness can be nearly packed into a handheld flashlight, the same flashlight that killed Ben Rodney. I'm sorry about that, but like I said, I don't think this is going to change the Oscars at all. I think this is a change. Have you been injured in the tactical flashlight related incident? You may be eligible for compensation. Don't let big tactical flashlight get the better of you. Again, it's funny because it's real.

15:45That's the world that we live in. I mean, you guys are going to get interrupted by an ad in the next few seconds. I'm sure. And this is where Hollywood is going, whether you love it or hate it. And that was a joke that everybody could partake in because everybody in that industry, everybody in the world at large, is thinking about these changes. And I personally chuckled because I am a sucker for Jane Lynch, just like I am also a sucker for cozy earth pajamas. I mean, guys, perfect timing for a YouTube ad, huh? Now, guys, for me, true comfort is cozy earth. And it is the kind of comfort that literally carries you from morning to night, because yes, we can talk about the pajamas, the bubble cuddle blind gets the sheets, but I have to tell you, like, cozy earth's clothes, they get me through the day as well. They're ribbed. Why T-shirt, you guys probably see me wear it on the show. It is my go-to playing my T-shirt. It is genuinely amazing, and it is rare that I am not wearing their essential socks. They are breathable. They're soft. They are thoughtfully cushioned to support you step by step from the first step out of bed in the morning, out of their sheets, to the end of a long day. Now, with multiple styles of these socks, they fit seamlessly into everyday life, and that is really what sets cozy earth apart as a brand. Every piece, every product, whether it is, you know, bedding or clothing, it is crafted with intention and attention to detail, designed to quietly elevate the every day.

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18:51Consider your future growth-bird budget secured. Start selling on D-pop. Where taste recognizes taste. Payment processing fees and boosting fees still apply. See website for details. Anyway, moving on from my perfectly timed ad read and Jane Lynch content, that skit with her was quickly followed by another one, sort of about the same thing, with audiences wanting vertical content and short form content and how there should be a whole production company that re-edits big movies like Casablanca into minute-sized vertical clips for scrolling, which is honestly not a bad idea. If you want Gen Z to see the great films, put them on TikTok. Great idea. Money maker. They're right there. Anyway, from their Conan did another one, making fun of modern attention spans and what Hollywood should do to actually reach people and guys, you will never believe what vernacular he used. Just watch. Of course, we here at the Oscars are always trying to figure out ways to reach a younger demographic. And I've been assured this next segment will do just that. When your host mass in the Oscars, and low cannually trying to risk up the younger demographics

19:53by going brain rot mode, and even though you're uncoated with a bunch of famed-filled NPCs, you're still S tier level or a farming, 6-7. Well. I mean, guys, the clovicular lexicon officially made its way to Hollywood, it was only a matter of time. And it said, Conan dropping, magging, and gesture maxing in the Oscars monologue is the clearest sign yet that the timeline has officially won. Now even though that was a bunch of mumbo jumbo on screen that he just read, I did appreciate that he called all of the actors and actresses, like, famed-pilled NPCs. Like that might be the most honest thing we got out of the entire show, so I did appreciate that. Like, now that I've laid it all out for you, like, do you guys see, like, the throughline here? Like, it was somewhat mocking audiences and, like, poking fun at Gen Z, sure, but in a lot of ways, like, to me, this is why I'm bringing it up. It did feel like Conan was kind of reading the room of Hollywood at almost preparing this whole group for the future, and acknowledging how society feels about that, which, in a lot of ways, is not great. And I also think it's not just about Hollywood at large, like, we already know that the Oscars themselves are feeling the pressure of the changing landscapes and the lessening relevance

20:56because last year, they switched from doing just the show on ABC and cable to putting it on YouTube for streaming, and obviously the next step in 2029 is YouTube, but that one decision in 2025 to put it on Hulu boosted their views to almost double their all-time low, which was back in 2021, and the CEO of the Academy came out and he said that they did this very openly because viewership habits had changed. He also said that they needed to change how they were viewing success. He said, we have to think about the metric for success differently as our viewing habits changed, citing plans to include the night of linear and digital ratings, as well as a seven-day ratings number and social media engagement. Quote, the days of just saying how many people watched a show on linear TV night of has evolved and that's good. Now, it's funny that they said this in 2025 because, again, this changed in 2016, I don't even know how long ago, but those metrics have been changing for a long time, so they're a little bit late here, but at least they're finally catching up. And so yes, this does mean that they are changing how they are distributing the show, again, they're putting it on streaming, they're going to have it on YouTube, which will definitely help in the algorithm and people clipping it out, and that sort of thing. But I'm sure it also changes how they are producing the show, because rather than focusing

22:00on one long linear performance, at least in my opinion last night, it felt like they were trying to produce a series of the short viral moments, almost like a really, like a worse version of SNL. Like the presenter's skits were awkward, they were obviously not organic in previous years, I felt like they were a little more organic. The skits were all digital, they were pre-recorded, they weren't like gagged on stage, like they even had Leonardo DiCaprio making meme faces on the spot. It was the most chuggy, boomer attempt at like viral content. Somebody commented and said, pretending to be self-awareness-maxing can't save you from bridge-maxing and bad Hollywood writer-maxing, which is very true. Anyway, the point is, it felt like everything about it was tailored towards social media, whether it was the production or the commentary, and you know, credit where credit is due, because while the ratings, night of, were not actually that high, they did perform better than the Super Bowl on social media, so that is at least something. But here's the thing, guys. Even though they did all the skits, and they wrote all of the quote-unquote jokes, those views on social media were not because of Conan's skits or the presenters and their comedy. Like I literally had to spend an hour this morning googling to find all of those videos

23:02to show you, it was people talking about Timothy Chalamet. That is why the Oscars were talked about, is because everybody that I saw, now granted, I might have a very Timothy-tailored algorithm right now, but every post that I saw was about Timothy. It was Timothy versus Michael B. Jordan, who was gonna win Best Actor, or Timothy versus the opera and ballet, like literally every single person on the right carpet was asked about the controversy. Like that took the place of politics on Sunday night. It was not ICE and Trump, it was what do you think about Timothy and the opera and ballet? Like the self-importance with so many of these people was nauseating. Like they were coming up to the microphone and going, oh, Timmy, oh Timothy, why did you do that? Oh, I bet you didn't know that was gonna go viral. Maybe think better next time, like as if you haven't tripped up and said something that you regret, as if something that you've said hasn't been taken out of context as if that will not happen to you in the age of social media, because like I said in that episode, the mob is just waiting with vaded breath for something to clip and to get angry about. You might be mocking Timothy, but it might be your time in just a couple of weeks. As a short aside here, I do want to say that the best part of this entire controversy

24:02in my opinion was the people magazine was on the red carpet, and they asked a bunch of these loud mouths of important celebrities if they had a favorite opera or ballet, and some of these people like squeaked out the Nutcracker or Swan Lake, but most of them could not come up with anything. And no ballet, no opera, there for proving Timothy Shalamet's point. And so while poor Timothy Shalamet did not win Best Actor last night, Martin like Marty Supreme did not win a single award, so I feel bad for him in that regard. It might actually be the Kardashian curse if we can talk about that in another episode. So while that did not happen, it might not have been his best night, we do need to acknowledge the Timothy Shalamet single-handedly just made ballet and opera relevant again, and he also gave the Oscars the social media ratings boost that they have been desperately trying to achieve for years. So just because of that, somebody needs to give him an honorary Oscar, because we know that is all the man wants. President Barack Obama, Virginia, we are counting on you. Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to raid the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years, but you can stop them by voting yes by April 21st.

25:07Help put our elections back on a level playing field and let voters decide not politicians. Vote yes by April 21st. Early birds always rise to the occasion for summer vacation planning, because early gets you closer to the action. So don't be late. Book your next vacation early on Verbo and save over $120. Rise and shine. Ever savings $141 select homes only.