It turns out nobody, really. At least no actors on that level of stardom or anybody that would likely take offense at the declawed jokes that Gervais trotted out in his brief opening monologue.
Onstage at the ballroom at the Beverly Hilton, Gervais took a sip of his drink and read off the rules given to him by the Globes’ voting body, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The guidelines included no profanity, no smut, no jabs at the HFPA itself, and no Mel Gibson jokes - and Gervais essentially stuck to them.
Justin Bieber, James Cameron, and Helen Mirren all got a light tap. Punching bag of the moment Kim Kardashian came in for unfavorable comparisons to Kate Middleton - “a bit louder, a bit trashier, a bit drunker, and more easily bought’’ - and Eddie Murphy received a poke for abdicating the Oscar host job: “When the man who said yes to ‘Norbit’ says no to you, you know you’re in trouble.’’
Jodie Foster gave Gervais the thumbs up for a mildly risqué pun on her and Mel Gibson’s film “The Beaver.’’ And Gervais’s own plumbing took a self-deprecating hit. But generally speaking, the host took it easy on the room.
When Depp - who clearly didn’t take offense, since he’s appearing on Gervais’s upcoming HBO series “Life’s Too Short’’ - emerged to introduce a clip of one of the evening’s best drama contenders, Gervais asked Depp if he’d seen “The Tourist’’ yet. Depp laughed and clapped and said he hadn’t. As Gervais scampered off, Depp smiled and said, “Oh boy, he’s fun.’’
And then the business of handing out trophies began, and things got even more boring.
