Bill Maher Says the Oscars Are Being Ruined by ‘Ridiculous Purity Tests’

With the Oscars just a week away, Bill Maher has some thoughts. The outspoken “Real Time” host compared the awards ceremony to the early stages of the Democratic primary, pleading with liberals not to “eat our own” as more and more contenders throw their hats in the ring and going so far as to say that the Academy Awards are being ruined by “ridiculous purity tests.”

“This is a real problem in our society, looking to dump someone good because there must be someone more perfect,” Maher said at the end of last night’s show. “And sometimes, what you end up with is no one to host the Oscars at all.”

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” for example, is “flawed because it’s gay, but not gay enough. Really, that’s what they’re saying,” he said. “It’s insensitive to the extremely gay. What? For years, the beef about gay characters in movies was they were reduced to their sexuality. Now, the sexuality is pushed to the background and it’s, ‘Where’s the dick-sucking?’”

Then there’s “Roma,” which “delivers such an authentic portrait of a Mexican housekeeper, Arnold Schwarzenegger tried to impregnate it.” As for “Green Book,” which has been called out for its racial politics, “is a movie made by liberals, for liberals, bursting at the seams with liberal values — not good enough!”

Maher also brought up “A Star Is Born,” specifically a Vox article claiming that it has “big problems with consent” because of the power imbalance between Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga’s characters. “That is what you got out of ‘A Star Is Born?'” he asked. “‘Cause all I learned was, don’t wear khakis onstage when you really have to pee.”

Watch the full segment below: