John Oliver relives awkward moment with Oprah at the Emmys
On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, John Oliver told a story about a time that things got awkward with Oprah. During his 2017 Emmys acceptance speech, the Last Week Tonight host noticed Oprah in the front row and decided to thank her along with his staff. After the speech, Oprah met Oliver backstage, because she’s Oprah and she can go where she wants. She hugged him — which is when things got weird.
“She hugged me, and it was amazing, and then I released my part of the hug, and she continued. So at this point I’ve gone limp, and she’s just holding me, and she has successfully attained the power position,” Oliver said.
As awkward as that may have been, it wasn’t over.
“She eventually releases me, but holds my hand, and starts walking with me in the opposite direction that I needed to go in,” Oliver said. “So I followed her until the point that it became problematic that I was going in the wrong way, and I said, ‘Oprah, I’m sorry, I need to go that way.’ And she gently released my hand, and looked to me as if to say, ‘Be free.’” He added, “She’s the best.”
In the same speech, Oliver thanked D.C. public schools. Fortunately for him, the D.C. area school district wasn’t in attendance.
The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon airs weeknights at 11:35 on NBC. Watch clips and full episodes of The Tonight Show for free on Yahoo View.
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