Bill Maher snarked about the usual batch of suspects on Real Time—politicians like Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro were in the firing line—but a new, more glamorous name also was a huge topic of debate. On Saturday, the host spoke candidly about Barbie’s snubs at the Oscars.
“What a week!” Maher began in his opening monologue. “First, Margot Robbie gets snubbed at the Oscars. Then, Taylor Swift gets booed at the football game. If you know a rich blonde bombshell, give her a hug.”
Later in the show, Maher went on to discuss this year’s Oscar nominations in greater detail. While Barbie earned a solid eight noms, lead actress Margot Robbie and director Greta Gerwig were snubbed by the academy.
“The matter has been handed over to the International Criminal Court and is being investigated for a war,” Maher quipped about the controversy.
Maher went on: “I don’t know why this is such a giant controversy now,” he said. “I mean, best actress. That’s the category, you know, [Robbie] lost to other actresses. It’s not like they gave her slot to Vin Diesel. Is this really the patriarchy?”
Later in the episode, Maher still couldn’t let the Barbie brouhaha go. The host asked guests Seth MacFarlane and Rep. Adam Schiff if they thought the lack of Barbie nominations meant Americans were living in a patriarchy.`
“I don’t think you can judge that from Barbie not getting nominated,” Schiff said.
Maher continued with his key takeaways from the movie: “I remember I saw it in the theater and I liked it, it’s entertaining, but at one point, the Barbies have to like, win back the Kens and they do it by acting helpless. And the woman I was with said, ‘I don’t know any woman today who would do that.’”
It’s not all bad news for Barbie. The film was nominated for Best Picture, meaning that Robbie—who served as a producer on the pic—does have a single nom. Gerwig also earned a nod in the Best Adapted Screenplay category.
