LOS ANGELES — Hasan Minhaj provided a laugh as host of Saturday’s Film Independent Spirit Awards.
But the comedian failed to convince actress Cate Blanchett to participate in a hearing gag during the awards ceremony for independent films.
Blanchett literally hid under her table to avoid participating in the routine, which could first be an awards show.
The Oscar-nominated “Tár” actress laughed with her hands to her face when Minhaj first approached during the track’s introduction. The host asked Blanchett to do “lopsided expressions” for the cameras to generate “clickbait thumbnail” photos for the show’s YouTube broadcast.
But Blanchett shocked star-studded audiences — and Minhaj — by diving under the table full of other “Tár” filmmakers.
“Is she coming out the other end?” Minhaj asked in disbelief as Blanchett continued to hide.
The host quickly moved on to “Tár” director Todd Field for a face. But Field also jumped under the table with Blanchett.
“Do we have anyone else?” Minhaj asked, moving to new tables. But neighboring stars Marisa Tomei and Regina Hall continued the exodus under the table, with all four Hollywood personalities hiding under one table.
Minhaj was forced out of the skit which did not illicit an unbalanced expression.
Here is the moment captured on Twitter:
And here are Minhaj’s other big hosting moments at the Indie Spirit Awards, which took place under a tent on the beach in Santa Monica, Calif.
Minhaj mocks YouTube broadcast
Minhaj expressed his surprise that the independent awards show was broadcast live on YouTube and Twitter. Cable channel IFC has aired the show for the past few years, “but they didn’t renew their contract,” he said.
“Let me reiterate how serious this is – the Independent Film Channel didn’t want the Independent Film Awards,” he said, noting that the IFC showed the poorly reviewed 2008 Will Ferrell comedy. Semi-Pro” instead of the star-filled gala.
“‘Semi-Pro’ was filmed in Flint Michigan and it was the worst thing that ever happened there,” he said.
Minhaj jokes about first ever gender neutral categories
The host had a few laughs about the Independent Spirit Awards making film awards history by moving into gender-neutral acting categories.
“For the first time ever, all acting awards will be gender neutral,” Minhaj said as he gazed at Hollywood stars in the audience. “We don’t care about your gender identity, as long as you’re sexy.”
The joke continued:
“It’s true Fox News. We know you’re watching Tucker Carlson. Just know that we’re not mired in a culture war. We don’t care about unnecessary binaries, like male or female. We only care about binaries important like lead and support. I’m glad we’re getting rid of gender categories. Because for the first time in history, all men know what all women have to deal with when they find out they’re are competing against Cate Blanchett.