"I know what this really means…this is the 'Too F--king Old to Come Back' award."
This was the less-than-gracious but nonetheless awesome way that Mark Wahlberg began his acceptance speech at the MTV Movie Awards last night. You can watch his full speech above (via MTV), where he laments his age, shushes his Entourage crew, and takes a moment to remember God among lots of cursing. It was just about as loopy as Jodie Foster's acceptance speech at the Golden Globes, so…thanks?
The award came as no surprise to Wahlberg as MTV had publically announced the honor last month. From there, Wahlberg teamed up with MTV correspondent Josh Horowitz for a promo spot that played to the former's strengths, like sentimentality and smoldering.
Introducing Wahlberg and his Generation Award were Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon and Jerry Ferrera from the Wahlberg-produced hit show Entourage. After a kiss to his former model wife, Wahlberg played into his old man shtick by making a show of getting out of his chair. Then he dug into what he saw as his farewell speech to the MTV Movie Awards.
He listed former honorees of Generation Awards: Jim Carrey, Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler, and Jennifer Aniston. "You know what they all have in common," he asked the crowd, "None of them are invited back. They're all fucking old!"
"This is 'You're Fucking Done' (award)," he said to a crowd that giggled nervously. "But you know what? It was a great run and I'm a lucky guy in so many ways. To have worked with so many talented people. To have gone from literally being incarcerated to having a one-hit rap career to going to being an underwear model career to getting a real chance from Penny Marshall." What is he referring to here? Why his first-ever movie role courtesy of the Marshall-directed comedy Renaissance Man!
Wahlberg seems a little out of control here, mocking the crowd for their youth, demanding his presenters quiet down, and meandering around on stage and in his speech. But it's easy to see why he looks at this award as a kind of kiss-off. It reminds me of the time Michael Caine described Lifetime Achievement awards, saying they seem to assume you have nothing else valuable to contribute to the arts, and worse yet they make up a chronological montage of your career so you get to see yourself melt onscreen.
Still, his main point was that he is grateful, for his family, his career, his "real entourage," his wife, and good fortune. ("This is America and anything is possible!") And we are too, grateful for all the bold ways Wahlberg has entertained us and damn well better continue to, Golden Popcorn or no.
Mark Wahlberg will be hitting theaters later this year Transformers: Age of Extinction.
