Ellen DeGeneres was back as host of the 2014 Academy Awards, seven years after she first did the honors, and left many viewers hoping for a 2015 encore.
DeGeneres didn’t appear in any sort of pre-produced skit to kick off her monologue. Instead, simply just brought the funny, starting with her very first line.
"For those of you watching around the world, it has been a tough couple of days for us here. It has been raining. We’re fine. Thank you for your prayers."
DeGeneres couldn’t resist some quality digs at Hollywood, calling out Liza Minelli, telling the legendary performer that she made for a convincing drag queen.
"Good job, sir," the host quipped.
Ellen gave a shout-out to Jennifer Lawrence falling, telling the Best Supporting Actress nominee, "If you win tonight, I think we should bring you the Oscar.
Another nominee also got a mention early on, with Ellen joking, "I’m not going to say who looks the most beautiful tonight But it’s clear. It’s Jared Leto."
"Ellen, I love you," was the first thing Leto said later in the show when he accepted his best supporting actor Oscar for his role in Dallas Buyers Club.
DeGeneres closed out her opening monologue by making a crack about the film widely expected to win Best Picture (and which went on to do just that):
"Possibility number one: 12 Years a Slave wins best picture," she said of the acclaimed Steve McQueen production. "Possibility number two: You’re all racists."
Later, this Ellen DeGeneres Oscar selfie set a new Twitter record with 2 million retweets … and it’s easy to see why, given that cast of smiling characters.
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