Last Week Tonight supposedly decided to cool the Adam Driver obsession that inserted itself into otherwise bleak COVID updates, in which John Oliver declared that “Adam Driver fever” is the only infectious disease that should exist. In addition, the show declared Driver to be a “f*ckable redwood,” “brooding mountain,” and “big unwashed buffalo,” who Oliver begged, “Sneeze in my McFlurry, you pensive bison. Ravage my lungs, you relentless hillock.” This culminated (again supposedly) with Driver appearing on 2020’s last episode to call things out. Driver’s demeanor appeared to be stern, though one would imagine that (to some degree) that he’s enjoying the joke. Maybe?
Well, the obsession continued when the show recently responded to Driver’s new Burberry ad, in which he shirtlessly frolics in the ocean and turns into a centaur, and at Sunday night’s Emmys, the show’s writing staff dedicated their honor to Driver: “He knows what he did, and we know what we’d like him to do.”
Also, Deadline caught up with Oliver backstage (after the show not only picked up that writing award but also their sixth consecutive Variety Talk Series Emmy). Via Deadline, Oliver answered a question of whether Driver appeared in the episode submitted for Emmy voting consideration, and here’s how the host responded:
“I mean, if he wasn’t, most of last year, even if we didn’t mention his name, his presence was felt throughout all our scripts. So, I don’t know if he was, we noticed Adam Driver last year. I don’t know if you noticed us noticing him. We had said we wouldn’t do the joke again — but if he’s mad about it, that’s what we are really looking for.”
When further asked whether Oliver had helped write jokes while at home in his underwear, he got downright naughty. “It’s not just writing the show,” he declared. “You don’t see me below the waist for a reason. So, yeah, I’ve been naked from the waist down for the last 18 months.” Hang on, was Oliver pantsless during the below moment? Never mind, I don’t need the answer to that question.
(Via Deadline)