Amy Schumer's Oscars Backlash Was More Serious Than We Thought
The 94th annual Academy Awards was arguably one of the most eventful ceremonies in Oscars history, as it was largely overshadowed by a series of controversial moments. Of course, we're talking about when Will Smith stormed the stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock for making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head. However, Rock's remark wasn't the only joke from the evening that arguably fell flat.
Case in point: Many were confused when comedian Amy Schumer — who hosted the show alongside Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes — positioned herself in the audience next to Jesse Plemons, and pretended not to recognize Plemons' wife, actor Kirsten Dunst. During the bit, Schumer joked that Dunst was a "seat filler," meaning she was saving the seat for an actual celebrity. She guided Dunst away from the table, joking with Plemons, "You're married to that seat filler?" Of course, Schumer meant no harm — and when some critics accused her of malice, she responded on her Instagram Stories, quipping (via Page Six), "Wouldn't disrespect that queen like that."
Now, Schumer has revealed the backlash was worse than we originally suspected — and that she received some terrifying threats.
Amy Schumer reveals she got death threats
During an April 13 appearance on SiriusXM's "The Howard Stern Show," Amy Schumer got candid about her experience hosting the 2022 Oscars, reiterating that she went out of her way to respect the butt of her jokes. "I did reach out to people I was going to joke about before and make sure it was OK with them because I've been burned too many times," she said. Translation: Kirsten Dunst was in on the "seat filler" bit.
Sadly, Schumer's most-vocal critics didn't receive the memo, assuming the diss was real. And they took their frustration to the next level. "I got death threats. ... They were so bad that the Secret Service reached out to me about that bit," Schumer said. Using The Slap as a reference for the hypocrisy, she quipped, "I'm like, 'I think you have the wrong number. This is Amy, not Will [Smith]. She concluded, "The misogyny is unbelievable."
During the interview with Stern, Schumer also addressed the backlash she received for her comments on the altercation between Will Smith and Chris Rock. "People made fun of me for saying it was traumatizing," she told Stern. Adding, "I don't think it was traumatizing for me. I think it was traumatizing for all of us."