The Sydney Sweeney Joke That Was Too Harsh For The Golden Globes Just Leaked

Award show hosts have always walked a fine line between funny and offensive, especially when their job involves roasting some of the most famous people on the planet.

A good monologue gets laughs without crossing into territory that makes everyone uncomfortable. A bad one either falls flat or goes too far, becoming the story instead of the awards themselves.

Nikki Glaser returned to host the Golden Globes for the second consecutive year, and as expected, she came armed with sharp material aimed at Hollywood's biggest names.

Her opening monologue didn't shy away from controversial topics; she referenced the Jeffrey Epstein files within minutes and took the obligatory shot at Leonardo DiCaprio's well-documented preference for dating younger women. The audience laughed, squirmed a bit, and overall seemed to accept that roasting comes with the territory.

But one joke didn't make it to air. Glaser later revealed a particularly harsh quip about Sydney Sweeney that got cut from the final broadcast, and once it leaked online, the backlash was immediate.

The joke targeted Sweeney's recent film "Christy," a biographical sports drama about boxer Christy Martin that bombed at the box office.

What Glaser said, or rather, what she almost said, sparked debate about whether the joke was fair game or crossed a line by trivializing a serious subject for cheap laughs.

Christy trailer

The film's commercial failure was historic in the worst way possible. It reportedly opened to just $1.3 million (£989,814), marking it as one of the worst cinematic openings ever recorded for a queer film.

Nikki Glaser shared which Sydney Sweeney joke she ended up leaving out of her Golden Globes roast

Kevork Djansezian/CBS via Getty Images

Glaser's scrapped joke took direct aim at this box office disaster. According to the comedian, the joke read as follows: "Tonight is a night of celebration, but we can't ignore that it's a weird time in Hollywood. You know, people just aren't going to the theatres 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 punchline reduces a film about domestic violence and LGBTQ+ representation to nothing more than Sweeney's physical appearance and wardrobe choices.

The joke revolved around the box-office failure of Sweeney's Christy movie

Black Bear Pictures

Once the joke leaked online, reactions came swiftly. After catching light of the quip, fans rushed to social media to share their thoughts as one X user penned: "Ouch, that's a pretty brutal joke! I wonder if Sydney Sweeney has responded to it yet."

"This one didn't quite land. There are many things about Sydney Sweeney that make good material for award jokes, but this one doesn't cut it," slammed a second.

And a third chimed in: "Regardless of what you feel about Sydney Sweeney, relegating a movie about domestic violence to a movie about a 'lesbian bouncing around in tiny shorts' is just terrible."

The criticism highlights a recurring problem with roast humor; sometimes the desire for a big laugh leads comedians to trivialize serious topics.

Christy Martin's story involves surviving attempted murder by someone she trusted. Reducing that narrative to a joke about Sweeney's appearance misses the point entirely and dismisses the subject matter the film attempted to address.

Comedy at awards shows has always courted controversy, but there's a difference between roasting someone's career choices and making light of domestic violence for a punchline.

Glaser's deleted joke crossed that line for many viewers, even if it never actually aired. The fact that it got cut suggests someone involved recognized the problem before broadcast, but its leak afterward guaranteed the backlash would happen anyway.

Roasting celebrities is expected, but maybe some subjects deserve to stay off limits regardless of who's being targeted