'Very Important Pup': 'Anatomy of a Fall' star Messi the dog wins hearts at Oscars 2024 in a bow tie

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A four-legged star, Messi the dog, had his Hollywood moment during the opening monologue of the Sunday night, March 10 Academy Awards.

Jimmy Kimmel, the host of the Oscars, teased 'Madame Web', poked fun at the Academy voters for rejecting 'Barbie', and even took aim at Robert Downey Jr at the start of the show. Next on his list of targets was Messi, the dog star from 'Anatomy of a Fall'.

Jimmy Kimmel praises 'Anatomy of a Fall' star Messi the dog

Messi, sporting a massive bowtie, was honored for his crucial role in the French movie.

Kimmel recognized Messi as one of the biggest stars of this year's Oscars ceremony.

In his opening monologue for Sunday's broadcast, Kimmel made light of the less thrilling parts that Robert Downey Jr, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, played in 'Oppenheimer', as reported by People.

Kimmel, 56, made reference to 2006's The Shaggy Dog, saying, "He played the villain — and correct me if I'm wrong — a movie where Tim Allen turns into a dog."

The late-night host declared, "If they decide to remake that film, I have just the guy to play Tim Allen’s part." Then, while Messi was seated in the audience, the camera panned to him.

“Messi, who even though he’s a dog, may have given the performance of the year in Anatomy of a Fall,” Kimmel praised.

He went on to say, “Messi has an overdose scene, if you’ve seen it you’ve known it. It’s incredible.”

He jokingly said, “Honestly I haven’t seen a French actor eat his own vomit like that since Gérard Depardieu.”

'Anatomy of a Fall' at the Oscars

Five Oscars were up for 'Anatomy of a Fall', including Best Picture. Sadly, Messi's performance was not up for any of those nominations. The well-known dog did, however, take home the Palm Dog Award from the Cannes Film Festival in May.

Sandra Huller plays renowned German novelist Sandra Voyter in the Justine Triet-directed movie, where she is suspected of killing her husband Samuel (Samuel Theis).

Daniel (Milo Machado Graner), their blind son, uses Snoop as a guide dog. Messi, who plays Snoop, has been the talk of awards season even though he wasn't nominated.

He met celebrities and Oscar nominees like Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper at the Oscars luncheon in February.

Hours before the show started on Sunday, Kimmel and Messi also had some time together, dispelling reports that the dog wouldn't be there. The presenter posted a video of himself and Messi practicing their jokes on Instagram.

During the speech, however, the dog didn't seem to be impressed with most of Kimmel's jokes. However, as he said, “If you think the show feels overly drawn out to you, imagine how Messi feels right now. In dog years, this show is five and a half months long," Messi gave a thumbs up.

Regarding Messi's performance, his coach Laura Martin Contini stated to IndieWire back in February that he needed extensive training to play the role in the movie. She clarified, "Even the simplest things take a lot of work." 

Internet lauds Messi the dog

The Internet dubbed Messi the dog as "Very Important" on platform X, writing, "The #Oscars ' VIP (Very Important Pup)."

Another user noted, "A cute pup."

A third comment noted, "This dog really was the most incredible actor this year! I kept wondering how they did it, wondering if they used a prop!"

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