Since Dennis Miller emceed the inaugural MTV Movie Awards in 1992, "Saturday Night Live" has proven to be a fertile breeding ground for our awards-show hosts. "SNL" vets like Eddie Murphy, Jimmy Fallon and Mike Myers have since captained the Movie Awards, and this Sunday, May 31, at 9 p.m., Andy Samberg will assume hosting duties for the first time.
With just days to go until the big night, two men who have themselves quarterbacked MTV awards shows — "Get Him to the Greek" co-stars Russell Brand and Sean "Diddy" Combs — dealt out some wise words for Samberg heading into Sunday's action.
"Do not criticize George W. Bush," Brand, who hosted last year's VMAs, told MTV News. "You will receive death threats. Do not jokingly criticize the Jonas Brothers. You will receive less-threatening death threats."
During last September's show, Brand poked fun at the JoBros for their purity rings and abstinence pledges and aimed several barbs at then-president Bush. During our conversation, Brand was quick to make clear that he had absolutely nothing again the Jonases, calling them "lovely" and saying the band has forgiven him for the jokes.
Quashed JoBros beef notwithstanding, the British comedian still cautioned Samberg to avoid any sort of gesture that might elicit a death threat. "There's nothing worse than opening a letter and then seeing in it is a death threat," he said. "You think, 'Hold on a minute. I wasn't looking forward to the letter particularly. Now I fear death.' Ruins a perfectly good read."
And what sage advice might 2005 VMA host Diddy have for Samberg? "I would recommend Mr. Samberg just get drunk, throw away the script and have a good time," Diddy told MTV News. "If I could do it all over again, I would just be as drunk as I could be, and I wouldn't pay attention to the teleprompter. I would just have a great time."
In a nod to successful "SNL" hosts past, Diddy added, "[An MTV Awards show is] definitely one of the hardest stages in the world to host, and I think he'll do a great job, because he's been on probably the hardest stage in the entire world, 'Saturday Night Live.' "
Will the vampires grab more trophies than the slumdog? What was the year's ultimate onscreen WTF moment? It's up to you to decide the winners of the 2009 MTV Movie Awards. Vote now, and tune in on Sunday at 9 p.m. ET, when the big show airs live from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California.
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