Martin Short's Jiminy Glick Is Back To Show Those TikTok Doofuses How It's Done

It's no secret that TikTok is a social media giant, and there's at least one entire generation that has opted to watch short clips of video on their phone rather than spend time watching streaming shows or feature-length films, whether they're in theaters or even at home. Hell, some of the youths are probably watching TikTok videos while a forgettable streaming movie is playing in the background. Others are just watching them in small chunks, because they're being pirated on TikTok too.

Unfortunately, TikTok has become so pervasive in our entertainment culture that studios have been using popular influencers with millions of followers on the social media behemoth to help build publicity for upcoming movies and TV shows that TikTok users might not see in the trailers, commercials, and billboards that their screen-hungry eyes would otherwise never gaze upon. That includes inviting them to red carpet premieres, where they execute their exhausting schtick or ask dreadful, basic questions without any proper preparation.

But you know who deserves to take a spot on the red carpet or at the next big press junket while still being a total prat? Jiminy Glick. If you don't know Jiminy Glick, he's a fictional TV personality played by comedian Martin Short, obscured by a chubby body suit, prosthetic make-up, a wig, and cartoonish glasses. In the early 2000s, "Primetime Glick" was a Comedy Central series (spun off of the canceled variety program "The Martin Short Show") where Short would interview celebrities, actors, comedians, and filmmakers like Jerry Seinfeld, Goldie Hawn, Damon Wayans, and even Steven Spielberg, all while in character as Jiminy Glick. That led to a not-so-great movie called "Jiminy Glick in Lalawood," but since then, Short has reprised the role occasionally with supremely satisfying results.

If you're gonna goof on the red carpet, you better be on Jiminy Glick's level. Don't believe me? Glick still has the magic, as evidenced by Short's most recent return as the character on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," where he'll soon be acting as the show's guest host. To warm up for the occasion, Glick sat down for an interview with former "Saturday Night Live" cast member and Emmy-winning "Barry" creator and star Bill Hader, and the multi-hyphenate simply couldn't keep a straight face. 

Bill Hader is laughing almost immediately, with Glick's energetic but half-hearted introduction of the "SNL" cast member. But it's two minutes in where Hader absolutely loses it, when Glick explains what he imagines what "SNL" creator and executive producer Lorne Michael (who may be on the verge of retirement) must smell like. It's the kind of genuine, hearty laughter you love to see comedians pushing through, because you know it's real. And that's not the last time, either. Hader might laugh more than any other interview subject that Glick has had over the years; he's fully tearing up with laughter. 

It's amazing how timeless Jiminy Glick is too, despite the fact that all of his pop culture references seem to be dated. After all, as Glick explains to giggling Hader, he still has a beef with HBO for canceling "Arli$$," the comedy series starring Robert Wuhl that aired from 1996 to 2002. Of course, those references don't last more than a split second, because Glick's mind moves at breakneck speed, and we're crashing into the next non sequitur with barely any room to breathe. "Willie Mays just died." And now I'm dead from laughing so hard. 

This is the kind of material you'd love to have to help promote an upcoming movie or TV show, and that's because it's sharp satire. Making a mockery out of something that's inherently silly like the red carpet still requires more than a pathetic gimmick that makes teenagers laugh for a few seconds while they're sucking on vape pens and chewing on Peelerz (that's a gummy candy that TikTok has made very popular, look it up.) Martin Short is a comedy legend, and this kind of hearty laughter feels effortless, even though it's the result of plenty of writing, training, and experience.

So studios, stop throwing TikTok babies onto the red carpet to promote your movies or TV shows. Either get Jiminy Glick or get a professional journalist who knows what they're doing. If you want to hear more praise for Jiminy Glick, listen to the latest episode of the /Film Daily podcast below:

Martin Short is guest hosting "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" this week, and Jiminy Glick will be guest hosting the show on Thursday, June 27, 2024.