Share

Seth MacFarlane praised as Oscar host

Los Angeles - Seth MacFarlane has received wide praise online for his first-time act as an Oscar host, and saw many of his Family Guy fans rallying behind him during the ceremony, giving him a thumbs up for his opening monologue and early jokes.

Twitter came alive with praise for MacFarlane, while 57.1% of those who took part in a real-time poll on TVline.com rated his debut "above average" or even "awesome" at the outset of a musically-themed Oscar evening.

Star Trek star William Shatner, in the role of Captain James Kirk, literally dropped in from the future to warn MacFarlane he was doomed to be the "worst Oscars host ever".

Twitter trends

The monologue veered into frat house humor with We Saw Your Boobs, a 1930s song-and-dance number with MacFarlane name-checking actresses - many in the audience - who've appeared nude on screen in their careers.

The real-life Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles joined the production number, and #wesawyourboobs briefly trended on Twitter.

Take a look at Seth MacFarlane's opening song.

Prompt relief came from sock puppets re-enacting the crash scene from Flight before MacFarlane returned as the Flying Nun in a flirty green-room encounter with Sally Field, the original Sister Bertrille in the 1960s TV show.

Tough crowd to please

But not everyone was impressed.

"Seth McFarlane is wearing a tuxedo made of self-satisfaction and irrelevant pop culture references," TV writer Ed Lee tweeted during the ceremony.

Later on, MacFarlane tested the margins of good taste with a reference to Daniel Day-Lewis's Oscar-nominated performance as Abraham Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's eponymous film.

"The actor who really got into Lincoln's head was John Wilkes Booth," said the comedian, referring to the Civil War president's assassin.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE