John Mulaney Told A Marvel Joke That Made Robert Downey Jr. Burst Into Laughter

The first Oscars of the season were handed out at the Governors Awards earlier this week, with comedy legend Mel Brooks, film editor Carol Littleton, and actress Angela Bassett receiving honorary Academy Awards.

Unlike the Golden Globes, the Governor Awards landed a prepared host in John Mulaney. “Hello, ladies and gentlemen. It is an honor and a favor to be here. This is a strategic obligation. It is a pleasure to stand here on this temporary stage. For those of you that don’t recognize me from the Tuesday night AA meeting in the Palisades, my name is John Mulaney,” he said. Later in his monologue, Mulaney compared Bassett being nominated for an Oscar for a Marvel movie (Black Panther) to “getting a Pulitzer Prize for a Reddit comment.” Robert Downey Jr. really enjoyed that one.

Mulaney joked about Mel Brooks being the most Jewish man who has ever lived (“You know the guy that did the prosthetic nose for Maestro? He did Mel’s entire face and body and personality for the last 97 years”) and also told a funny story about auditioning for the role of “Young Cop” in an untitled Maggie Gyllenhaal project (he didn’t get the part).

Let this man host the Oscars (preferably with co-host Nick Kroll).

(Via Deadline)