Nikki Glaser revealed she cut a brutal Sydney Sweeney joke from her 2026 Golden Globes monologue, explaining how absent stars and sensitivity shaped her final onstage humor.
WEBDESK – Act Global Media – January 14, 2026
Comedian Nikki Glaser has revealed that she cut a particularly biting joke about actress Sydney Sweeney from her opening monologue at the 2026 Golden Globe Awards, saying she decided against delivering it because Sweeney was not in attendance.
Speaking Tuesday on SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show, Glaser, 41, shared the line she had prepared in response to what she described as a difficult year for Hollywood and declining theater attendance.
“Tonight is a night of celebration, but we can’t ignore that it’s a weird time in Hollywood,” Glaser said, reciting the scrapped joke. “People just aren’t going to the theater to see things. If you don’t believe me, there was a movie this year where Sydney Sweeney played a lesbian who just bounced around in tiny shorts for two hours, and it made $14.”
The joke referenced Christy, a biopic about boxer Christy Martin in which Sweeney underwent a dramatic physical transformation. Despite critical attention, the film struggled at the box office in 2025.
Glaser, who hosted the Golden Globes for the second time, said Sweeney was among several A-list celebrities spared from sharper jokes because they were not present at Sunday’s ceremony. Others included Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Sean Penn and Jonathan Bailey.
Had Pitt, 62, attended and been nominated for his role in the racing film F1, Glaser said she would have joked about Hollywood’s double standards around aging. “When a man turns 60, he gets to play a race car driver,” she said. “Meanwhile, after 35, every role for a woman is a tired mom who hates her life.”
Sean Penn, who did attend, received a comparatively mild jab, with Glaser calling him a “sexy leather handbag.” She said several harsher jokes about the actor were ultimately cut because she did not want to upset him.
Glaser also revealed a prepared joke for Wicked star Jonathan Bailey, who was named People magazine’s 2025 Sexiest Man Alive. The comedian said she planned to poke fun at the headline noting Bailey as the first openly gay man to receive the title.
Glaser’s comments offered a behind-the-scenes look at the balancing act comedians face at high-profile award shows, weighing sharp humor against the risk of alienating Hollywood’s biggest stars.
