Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for GLAADSo this is what goes on behind the scenes of the likes of Joy and Silver Linings Playbook!
After doing a bit of fawning over the audience—"you guys are all so pretty"—Jennifer Lawrence buckled down and got serious about honoring Robert De Niro, the recipient of the Excellence in Media Award at the East Coast installment of the 27th annual GLAAD Media Awards.
Well, J.Law-style serious, anyway.
"Robert De Niro is not gay, so I don't know why we're here," she deadpanned. "That aside, Bob has asked me to present him with GLAAD's Excellence in Media Award because, in his words, I am like a daughter to him. And that transpires to our once-a-week drinks at the Greenwich Hotel where I ask him advice on absolutely everything. And also when he gets drunk and pinches my cheek and says, 'You remind me of my little Helen.'
"Who's 4."
"As one of the greatest actors who's ever lived," Lawrence continued, "I can learn a lot from him, but the most important thing that he's taught all of us is acceptance. Bob is the kindest person I've ever met. His heart is so giving—I don't know what to do if you clap," she interjected in response to a smattering of applause. "Do I just keep going?
"All right. Everyone sit in stark silence," she pressed on. "His heart is so giving and with his own quiet strength it's no wonder that this man, and the incredible organization that is GLAAD, would come together tonight."
Then, she went for it. Despite her opening line.
"GLAAD and Bob have a lot in common. They're both gay," Lawrence paused to allow for the laughter. "Just kidding. I was told by five different people to cut that and I was like, 'Hell no.'"
She paused again, to wonder aloud whether she was being too loud. But ultimately they got to the clips of De Niro's work and he took the stage.
"Thank you, Jen," the two-time Oscar winner said. "If I were a lesbian, I'd be all over you. Being a father figure has its limitations."
Hey, if Jen can roll with it, we can roll with it.
"Jennifer Lawrence is not only a great actress, she's also a generous and devoted philanthropist. She's passionately committed to causes supporting human rights, including the one that brings us together tonight. She's a good friend—a respectful, loving friend. She didn't hesitate to be here tonight for me and for GLAAD—after I threatened her."
But we doubt there was an offer he could've made that she would've refused.
De Niro was being honored by GLAAD tonight for his various efforts over the years on behalf of LGBT rights, not least of which ensuring that the Tribeca Film Festival, which he founded, be used as a platform for diversity and a sounding board for a host of creative viewpoints. The actor also shepherded the short documentary, Remembering the Artist: Robert De Niro Sr., to HBO, a look at the life of De Niro's father, an abstract painter who only felt free to live his authentic life as a gay man much later in his life.
"I don't think you know what it's like to be really discriminated against," De Niro joked most pointedly. "I turned on the television and saw this odd guy with little hands and he was raving. Turns out the ones being discriminated against are straight, middle-aged white men...I can't remember the last time I got a Teen Choice Award."