Eugene and Dan Levy Monologue Pokes Fun Without Making Fun

The 2024 Emmy Awards are officially underway — and Eugene and Dan Levy kicked off television’s biggest night with a hilarious monologue that was as mild as promised, but still found plenty of ways to laugh.

During the 76th Emmy Awards on Sunday night, the Emmy-winning pair and Schitt’s Creek alums — who are the first father-son duo to host the awards show — took the stage at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, bringing the laughs without going for the harsh barbs, as promised.

Instead, the duo found other ways to poke fun at the biggest shows of the year, without singling out any of their stars for barbs. For example, they spoke about universal truths, where Eugene noted that “we’ve all all had a teacher that’s changed our lives like Quinta Brunson in Abbott Elementary.”

“And we’ve all had a codependent, borderline homoerotic relationship with our boss like Anna Einbinder in Hacks,” Dan countered, completely missing the mark — humor without attack.

That’s not to say there were zero attacks, though. The comedians just leaned into that other adage, if you’re going to punch as a comedian, it’s better to punch up.

Talking about Reservation Dogs’ first-ever nominations after three critically-acclaimed seasons, Dan quipped, “So you might say Academy voters found a show that’s been thriving for years and say, ‘Hey, look what we discovered.'”

They also took aim at the top-nominated shows in each category, with Eugene pointing out that Shōgun is already the “most decorated show in a single season” after picking up 14 awards at the Creative Arts Emmy.

That led into Dan’s lengthy joke about how far they went to get the language and subtitles just right, which he suspects a lot of fans missed “because you were also watching Sabrina Carpenter eat a hot wing.”

Just about the only potential controversy they touched upon was the most-nominated comedy in history being a show that’s arguably not a comedy. But the guys promised they weren’t going to make that the subject of any of their bits, with Eugene noting, “In the true spirit of The Bear, we will not be making any jokes.”

They also decided that they themselves were fair game, with Eugene touchingly noting that of all the dads he’s played on television, he told Dan that his most rewarding has been “being your dad,” before adding, “in Schitt’s Creek, because it got me my first acting Emmy.”

Dan then wrapped by asking the audience to keep their shocking or political commentary short because his 77-year-old dad’s nerves can’t handle it.

While they set up their monologue by noting that they are not comedians, but rather actors, we have to say they both nailed just the right tone for an awards show. It’s no wonder they nailed these performances, as both Eugene and Dan are Emmy winners themselves.

Dan has four Emmy Awards to his name — picking up the trophies for his work as creator, supporting actor, director, and writer of Schitt’s Creek. His father, meanwhile, was first celebrated with a writing win back in 1982 and 1983 for SCTV Network … before he joined his son with the Schitt’s Creek Comedy Series win in 2020, as well as a Lead Actor win the same year.

Dan and Eugene were announced as the hosts of the 2024 ceremony last month.

“For two Canadians who won our Emmys in a literal quarantine tent, the idea of being asked to host this year in an actual theater was incentive enough,” the two shared in a joint statement at the time. “We’re thrilled to be able to raise a glass to this extraordinary season of television and can’t wait to spend the evening with you all.”

Anthony Anderson hosted the 2023 telecast, which actually aired only nine months ago, in January, after a delay caused by the actors and writers’ strikes.

To see more 2024 Emmys coverage, click here.