I wish I could claim that I am a film buff and know which Batman actor Michael Keaton played off the top of my head, but I would be lying. Despite my father’s qualms when I have to google names like “Jo Koy” after hearing he was the host of this year’s Golden Globes—I do love and obsess over the film “La La Land,” and subsequently Ryan Gosling. I loved “I’m Just Ken,” and Margot Robbie as Barbie seeing the beauty of the world meant so much to me. Her having the space to just experience serenity without any outside distractions or malice brought me insurmountable joy because I felt that my vision of the world was conveyed and understood so intimately. “Barbie” offered a space for me and so many other feminists within the world to have a space to talk and connect. For comedian Jo Koy to make a mockery of that experience so many people shared in front of the whole world was offensive and appalling. I cannot even begin to explain how hurtful and upsetting his comments were to myself and others.
According to the Golden Globes Awards website, Koy was picked to host the ceremony because he would bring three things: “his unique charm, energy and unpredictable humor.” Of those things, he was definitely unpredictable, but I must have missed the part where he was supposed to be genuinely humorous. Maybe I should cut him some slack—It is unrealistic to expect perfection, after all. We are all human, but I think taking accountability is what ultimately redeems someone. Thank goodness Koy did that!—NOT.
At the most, Koy claimed his Taylor Swift jokes didn’t land the way he wanted in a Good Morning America interview, according to Variety. When he said that the Golden Globes had more to look at than Taylor Swift, as opposed to the NFL, he said he meant it to be a jab at the NFL rather than an insult to Taylor. Instead of taking responsibility, he relied on playing the victim and having a “tough crowd” for a majority of his response to the criticism. According to Variety, Koy said he only had 10 days to get his script written before the awards show aired and expressed his thoughts on how ridiculous it would be if anyone expected him to have a perfect speech done. Additionally, he says he did not write his entire speech, and that other writers had a hand in writing the jokes he said that night. Instead of apologizing, he doubled down, claiming that hosting was just a beast he was not prepared for.
I am so incredibly happy that he can hide behind a veil and call his pathetic attempt at comedy an experience he will not forget, because I will not forget it either. I genuinely hope he realizes how problematic his comments were, and that he didn’t have to say anything that was written for him. It was more than a “tough crowd”—It was an overwhelming reminder that people are no longer complacent in the oversimplification of issues within a space still unable to fully serve and appreciate the women within it. People did not laugh, they did not find it funny, and the only joke in that room had the title of “host.”Although there are claims saying the “Barbie” movie did not do enough for feminism, it did not justify Koy’s hateful comments. However, Koy’s performance stands as a real-life example of people who needed to see that message. As shown in the movie, the Barbie doll was created as the embodiment of a mother’s love and is far more than a “plastic doll with big boobies.” The criticism may be hard to handle, Mr. Koy, but I assure you that using the experience of women and those assigned female at birth as your punchline was even harder to handle for the rest of us.
