Watch: John Mulaney Shuts Down Emmys 2026 With Must-See Monologue
John Mulaney knows how to get a big reaction on live TV.
The former Saturday Night Live writer shocked the audience at the 2026 Emmys with a jaw-dropping joke that featured a notorious quote from DJ Khaled while presenting the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
“I believe it was DJ Khaled who said, ‘Real men don’t go down on their wives,’” Mulaney—who married Olivia Munn in 2024—said at the Sept. 14 ceremony. “But these nominees know that is BS. They know there’s often less pressure on them if they do that first.”
Although it was partially muted during the live broadcast, Mulaney’s comment prompted hysterical laughter from Sterling K. Brown, an enthusiastic nod from Mark Ruffalo and Noah Wyle’s wife Sara Wells to sheepishly hide behind him.
And for what it’s worth, Mulaney’s facts are partially correct. In 2018, Khaled went viral for saying he had never performed oral sex on a woman, including his wife Nicole Tuck.
“It’s different rules for men,” the rapper said during a 2018 appearance on the Breakfast Club Power show. “I just can’t do what you want me to do.”
Meanwhile, fans of the comedian confirmed that he was well-aware it was a risky choice to take during the NBC broadcast, as he teased the material at his Sept. 12 show in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“John Mulaney ran through his Emmy bit at his Grand Rapids show on Saturday,” one fan detailed on X, “and said he would quote DJ Khaled regardless if they approved it or not and then they cut his audio on NBC.”
Another shared Mulaney had allegedly told the Grand Rapids audience, “He REALLY wanted that DJ Khaled bit in there and his goal was to trick censors by not saying it during rehearsal.”
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Of course, Mulaney’s monologue would have shut down the house at Peacock Theater even without the shock value of his DJ Khaled reference. At another point, he borrowed a quote from Frank Vincent’s A Guy’s Guide to Being a Man’s Man, which he read aloud.
“‘A man’s man can be wearing the best clothes, drinking the finest wine, sitting with the most beautiful woman in Las Vegas,’” Mulaney recited from the Raging Bull star’s 2007 lifestyle book. “‘But if he doesn’t treat everyone around him with respect and class, he’s not a real man’s man. He’s just a jabroni in a good suit.’”
And with that, Mulaney presented the award—and the book, courtesy of the Glendale Public Library—to Wyle. For every winner at the Emmys 2026, keep reading…
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