14 DAY TRIAL // Chris Rock presented the award for Best Animation at last night's 2012 Oscars but, in doing so, he managed to step on quite a few toes. What most offended, it would seem, was his saying that doing animation work is not that hard.
However, he wasn't referring to making animated movies, as some of those who took his words to heart and were then offended by them assumed.
Rock was simply making fun of actors who complain that doing voice work for animated films is very hard work.
At the same time, he was also lashing out against stereotypes in the industry, as zap2it can confirm.
“I love animation. I love animation because in the world of animation, you can be anything you want to be,” Rock began by saying (unfortunately, we don't have a video of his speech at the moment).
“If you're a fat woman you can play a skinny princess. If you're a short wimpy guy, you can play a tall gladiator. If you're a white man you can play an Arabian prince. And if you're a black man, you can play a donkey, or a zebra. You can't play white, my God!” Rock added.
Of course, he must know what he's talking about, since he's no stranger to roles in animated films.
Because of this, he also knows that it's no hard work – and hearing other actors say it is just gets him mad.
“I hate when people go on TV and tell you how hard it is to do animations. 'Oh, Jay, it's such hard work.' No no no, UPS is hard work. Stripping wood is hard work,” the comedian explained.
He added that an actor who does voiceover for an animated film only has to show up, step inside the booth, be fed his lines and then recite them back.
“And then they give me a million dollars!” Rock added, grinning widely.
As noted above, his little speech got viewers at home divided on what to think: some said that the moment was one of the funniest of the night, bringing a healthy dose of humor to an otherwise boring night.
Others believe that Rock overstepped some boundaries in dissing fellow actors while presenting an award meant to honor their work.
As a side note, “Rango” won Best Animation – but Chris Rock managed to steal all the thunder with his little moment.