Hosting the Emmys can't be easy, but that doesn't mean just anyone should get the job.
NBC has tapped Saturday Night Live "Weekend Update" co-anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che as its hosts for the 2018 awards show, and while it might make sense on paper, Jost and Che should not host the Emmys. The duo's first promo (it's a mighty short one) is below, and I'm wildly unimpressed. A mild two-year-old joke about the popular vote? Come on. These dudes host "Weekend Update!" They have access to some of the most insightful, incisive writers out there. Their commentary should be scathing. But that's just the problem: it never is. Even when the two look dead into the camera and announce themselves, their semi-scripted banter is the only likable part of the segment. It's not that it doesn't make sense for them to host — they do have name recognition and are veterans of NBC, home of the 2018 Emmy Awards. But if this short is any indication, the two will be bringing nothing new to the table.
It's also important to consider the men's backgrounds. Lest we forget Che once sent his followers to target and harass female journalists online. And by "once," I mean in March of this year —just a few months ago. Yes, he's funny, but why is the network rewarding his bad behavior?
Meanwhile, Jost could stand to be a little more woke. A lot more, honestly. The pair recently sat for an interview with the LA Times that had Twitter giggling and eye-rolling at their expense. Jost's complaint about celebrated work being "too artsy" was a head-scratcher. Generally speaking, his punchlines are meh, and Che sabotages his own delivery by laughing before the joke. This is all okay for Saturday Night Live, but I ask again, why put them in charge of one of the biggest nights in television?
At least when Seth Meyers hosted the 2018 Golden Globes, he knew to back off as much as possible and let women run the show. — of course, he could have said no to the hosting gig entirely, but that's a different argument. The fact that Jost and Che told a major newspaper they don't care about award shows makes the decision to put them in charge of one even more baffling.
On the bright side, the two have a diverse writers' room backing them up, and the events of the night — or even between now and mid-September — could be enough to stir up a quality monologue or two. It's tough to be optimistic about it given their track records, but where would the world be without optimism?
