Last year, Brett Ratner lost his gig as Oscars producer because he told a Tower Heist screening audience that he doesn’t rehearse scenes because “rehearsal is for fags.” Not exactly a surprising revelation for anyone who’s seen a Brett Ratner movie, but even Brett Ratner should know better than to use a gay slur on stage during a public appearance. This was all in the same month, by the way, that Olivia Munn said Brett Ratner masturbated to her with shrimp, to which Ratner responded by saying “I banged her a few times, but I forgot her. … She wasn’t Asian back then.” Clearly he was going for a MacArthur Genius grant.
Brett Ratner isn’t really a drunk, because EZ Cheez is non-alcoholic, so he couldn’t go to rehab, but his fake apology tour did include shooting a series of PSAs for GLAAD. And what do you know, now GLAAD has given Brett Ratner an award for those same PSAs that they commissioned. This is either a heartwarming story about the power of talking to each other about important issues, or an example of GLAAD basically giving themselves an award that says “Great idea, us!”
The director has been tapped to receive the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation’s inaugural Ally Award as part of the watchdog group’s 24th annual Media Awards, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
“Out of anybody I’ve ever worked with, Brett has been the most humble and willing to put his money and actions where his mouth is,” GLAAD president Herndon Graddick told THR. “In terms of an ally and what someone can do after an incident that was negative like that, I’ve never worked with someone who displayed such genuine interest in helping the community. There’s no one who deserves this more than Brett does. GLAAD’s interest is in bringing allies in to join us in our fight for total equality and he really did that. I now consider him a friend.”
“I have long been a supporter of equal rights for everyone,” Ratner said. “So, when Herndon and the folks at GLAAD asked me to partner with them on this PSA campaign, I jumped at the opportunity. ” [THR]
See? It wasn’t even his idea. They’re giving him an award for agreeing with them. Look, it’s not that I think Brett Ratner is a homophobe, he’s just sort of a doofus. And this is the perfect example of GLAAD’s actual mission statement, which is to get themselves recognized as the official arbiters of gay taste. I mean, are you actually fighting for equality or just putting out press releases and throwing parties so you can hang out with famous people? I have to think that there were more important things they could’ve been doing when they were getting this Brett Ratner to make PSAs for them, which I imagine advanced the line at craft services a lot more than it did the public discourse. Call me when Michael Richards picks up a Source award, I bet that will be more entertaining.