January 9, 2024:
The 81st Golden Globe Awards saw comedian Jo Koy’s uproarious debut as host, eliciting laughter with a daring anti-Prince Harry and Meghan Markle joke. Despite acquiring the hosting duties just two weeks prior, Koy masterfully navigated the star-studded ceremony, celebrating winners like Lily Gladstone, Cillian Murphy, and the Succession cast, including Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Matthew Macfadyen. Koy’s comedic flair added a vibrant and entertaining element to the event, showcasing his ability to effortlessly connect with Hollywood’s elite while keeping the atmosphere light-hearted and memorable.
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During his debut as the host of the Golden Globes, comedian Jo Koy entertained Hollywood stars with a cheeky joke targeting Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Koy, a Filipino-American comedy star, took on the hosting role just two weeks prior to the event. In his opening monologue, he playfully teased celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, Bradley Cooper, and actor Barry Keoghan before directing his humor towards the royal couple.
Koy remarked, “Harry and Meghan Markle got paid millions for doing absolutely nothing – and that’s just by Netflix.” The audience responded with laughter, and the camera focused on Netflix’s CEO, Ted Sarandos. Notably, Harry and Meghan were not in attendance at the awards ceremony. The joke referenced the Netflix documentary, Harry & Meghan,s released in December 2022, where the couple discussed their decision to step back from their roles as working members of the royal family.
Viewers described Koy’s joke as “brutal,” and it followed what many consider a challenging year for the former royals.
In the wake of a challenging year for the former royal couple, Prince Harry delivered a joke during a public appearance that was deemed “brutal” by viewers. The year 2023 presented various professional and personal obstacles for them. Despite the success of Harry’s memoir Spare, their other ventures faced setbacks. Their podcast, Archetypes, created under a lucrative three-year deal with Spotify in 2020 worth £18m, was dropped within a year. The streaming platform’s head of podcast innovation and monetization, Bill Simmons, later criticized the couple as “grifters.”
The couple’s charity, Archewell, established in 2020 and named after their son Archie, experienced a significant drop in donations. The annual report and promotional film showcasing their charitable efforts were overshadowed by a staggering £8.7 million plunge in donations from 2021 to 2022. The US income tax return revealed a decrease from £10.3 million in 2021 to just over £1.6 million in 2022. Despite their efforts to highlight positive contributions, the charity faced financial challenges.
At the Golden Globes, the movie Oppenheimer and TV shows Succession and The Bear emerged as big winners. During the event, comedian Koy’s joke targeting Taylor Swift did not sit well with the singer. Additionally, Jim Gaffigan’s controversial quip addressing the unsealed Jeffrey Epstein court records left the audience wincing. The Golden Globes recognized outstanding achievements in both film and television, with notable moments that garnered mixed reactions from attendees and viewers alike.
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