76th Emmys: Emmy hosts Eugene and Dan Levy poke fun at the nominees during show opening

The 76th Emmy Awards took place in Los Angeles Sunday night, with Schitt’s Creek father-son duo Eugene and Dan Levy hosting the festivities.  

The pair opened the show with jokes about how many movie stars were nominated for roles on streaming services, how they aren’t really hosts but “actors acting like hosts,” and how to pronounce their names, with Eugene noting that if things go badly, his name is pronounced “Martin Short.”

Saying it was a special night for him, Eugene talked about playing dads on TV and in movies, telling his son the “most rewarding dad role ever has been being your dad,” and then after a pause, adding, “…in Schitt’s Creek,” noting it earned him his first acting Emmy. 

There were also plenty of jokes about this year’s nominees. One of the biggest laughs came at the expense of The Bear, the most nominated comedy in history. Eugene said that while people would expect them to make a joke about whether The Bear was really a comedy, “In the true spirit of The Bear we will not be making any jokes.” 

They ended their monologue with warnings to winners about their speeches being too long, sharing that as a “cruel joke,” both of them, “two Canadians,” were responsible for playing the winners off.

“Canadians don’t like interrupting anybody, it goes against our nature,” Eugene said, with Dan adding, “Confrontation in general is anxiety inducing especially for my 77-year-old father. I don’t want to be an alarmist here but having to cut you off may kill this man.”