It's the 2024 Oscars and Jimmy Kimmel was roasting like it's 1999.
With Robert Downey Jr. in the house thanks to his standout performance in Oppenheimer and as the clear frontrunner in the Best Supporting Actor race, the host of course had to clear out some time in his monologue to have a little fun with the veteran movie star. (See all the stars at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre for the March 10 Oscars.)
First Kimmel noted that Downey's awards season sweep may not be the highest point of his "long and illustrious career," and the 58-year-old played along, grinning and tapping his nose in a tacit acknowledgment of the pun.
But when Kimmel asked if that was, in fact, a drug motion, Downey made a "let's keep it moving" gesture, as wife Susan Downey chuckled at his deft improvisation.
The master of charming self-deprecation—who did go on to win, as expected—has heard every joke there is to tell about his infamous pre-Iron Man past, after all. Though apparently he hadn't heard everything...
"Look at this guy, he's so handsome, he's so talented," Kimmel continued, "he's won every award there is to win. Is that an acceptance speech in your pocket or do you just have a very rectangular penis?"
At first Downey needed a second, but then he blinked, cocked his head and looked a bit coy.
While also totally communicating with his eyes, Let's move this thing along.
That, of course, was just one of Kimmel's onslaught of mini-roasts as he got the show going with Barbie jokes, a cameo by Anatomy of a Fall's canine star Messi and more. (Heck, it wasn't even the only male-anatomy-centric moment of the night, as John Cena appeared in the buff in an homage to the 1974 Oscar streaker's shortcomings.)
But while Kimmel didn't win rave reviews online for the taste level of his Downey quips, it's not as if he was wrong, per se, about the actor needing to be prepared for the 100-percent chance his name was going to be called later in the evening—31 years after receiving his first nomination, Best Actor for Chaplin.
This year's nod—the third of Downey's career—was one of Oppenheimer's leading 13 nominations heading into the 2024 Academy Awards. See all the night's winners so far:
Best Picture
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
WINNER: Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Annette Bening, NYAD
Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan, Maestro
WINNER: Emma Stone, Poor Things
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Bradley Cooper, Maestro
Colman Domingo, Rustin
Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
WINNER: Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple
America Ferrera, Barbie
Jodie Foster, NYAD
WINNER: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Sterling K. Brown, American Fiction
Robert De Niro, Killers of the Flower Moon
WINNER: Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer
Ryan Gosling, Barbie
Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things
Best Directing
Anatomy of a Fall, Justine Triet
Killers of the Flower Moon, Martin Scorsese
WINNER: Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan
Poor Things, Yorgos Lanthimos
The Zone of Interest, Jonathan Glazer
Best Animated Feature Film
WINNER: The Boy and the Heron
Elemental
Nimona
Robot Dreams
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Best International Feature Film
Io Capitano, Italy
Perfect Days, Japan
Society of the Snow, Spain
The Teachers' Lounge, Germany
WINNER: The Zone of Interest, United Kingdom
Best Documentary Feature Film
Bobi Wine: The People's President
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
To Kill a Tiger
WINNER: 20 Days in Mariupol
Best Documentary Short Film
The ABCs of Book Banning
The Barber of Little Rock
Island in Between
WINNER: The Last Repair Shop
Nǎi Nai and Wài Pó
Best Live Action Short Film
The After
Invincible
Knight of Fortune
Red, White and Blue
WINNER: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Best Animated Short Film
Letter to a Pig
Ninety-Five Senses
Our Uniform
Pachyderme
WINNER: War Is Over! Inspired by The Music of John & Yoko
Best Production Design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
WINNER: Poor Things
Best Original Song
"The Fire Inside," Flamin' Hot
"I'm Just Ken," Barbie
"It Never Went Away," American Symphony
"Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)," Killers of the Flower Moon
WINNER: "What Was I Made For?," Barbie
Best Original Score
American Fiction
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Killers of the Flower Moon
WINNER: Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best Sound
The Creator
Maestro
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
WINNER: The Zone of Interest
Best Makeup & Hairstyling
Golda
Maestro
Oppenheimer
WINNER: Poor Things
Society of the Snow
Best Costume Design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
WINNER: Poor Things
Best Original Screenplay
WINNER: Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Maestro
May December
Past Lives
Best Adapted Screenplay
WINNER: American Fiction
Barbie
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best Visual Effects
The Creator
WINNER: Godzilla Minus One
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon
Best Film Editing
Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
WINNER: Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best Cinematography
El Conde,
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
WINNER: Oppenheimer
Poor Things