While Field of Dreams obviously wasn’t even eligible to be a 2024 Oscar winner, John Mulaney wanted it to be, and he made that hilariously clear during this year’s Academy Awards. The comedian’s joke about one of the best sports movies went over very well, with many saying he'd be a great host for the ceremony, and now Kevin Costner has reacted after watching it for “a second time.”
With Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga slated on the 2024 movie schedule, he’s been out and about promoting the movie. Considering that and the fact it’s Field of Dreams’ 35th anniversary, the Oscar winner was asked about John Mulaney’s joke about it. Speaking with People, he explained that he adored the comedian's bit:
I couldn't believe that guy. Amazing. I watched it a second time.
It really was hilarious. I know I was laughing hysterically throughout Mulaney’s little heartfelt tangent about the sports movie, and it sounds like Kevin Costner was too, as he continued:
What a chance, because there's always people in the Oscars trying to rush you. And he went fast. But what he said, I was very touched by it. I should talk to him because I was really impressed. He was a genius.
I love that he was “impressed” and “touched” by it. John Mulaney seems to have an affinity for Field of Dreams, and as he said, he wished it could win Best Picture. His quick delivery of the plot caught me off guard, and then hearing him hilariously explain the story and the silliness of Costner’s character watching ghosts play baseball had me wiping tears of laughter away from my face.
The film’s star was touched by this funny and loving tribute to his movie too, and he finished off his comments about it by saying:
I loved what he did.
Many loved what he did too, and it’s not the first time Mulaney has poked adoring fun at a classic ‘80s movie before. If you’ve watched John Mulaney’s stand-up specials you are likely aware of his jokes about Back to the Future and The Fugitive. The stand-up comedian is incredibly good at explaining plots of movies many love that put the plot holes and silly concepts on display, however, it’s also obvious through his delivery that he’s a big fan of these films too.
The Field of Dreams joke is structurally similar to one of Mulaney’s best bits that involves The Fugitive, a ballroom and Bill Clinton. In the joke from The Comeback Kid, the stand-up is telling a story about meeting the former President, and it spirals into him explaining the entire climax of The Fugitive because said meeting happened in the same ballroom where this film moment took place. He did a similar thing at the Oscars, talking about this year’s sound nominees before diving into a small and hilarious tangent about the baseball movie.
Much like Mulaney’s other jokes about old movies, this Oscars moment went off without a hitch, and folks loved it! It’s even better now because Kevin Costner adores it too!
To go back and see just how on-point John Mulaney’s synopsis of Field of Dreams is, you can stream it with an Amazon Prime subscription. If you want a little more of Mulaney’s comedy in your life, you can stream his stand-up specials with a Netflix subscription and rewatch his Oscars bit multiple times just like the Yellowstone star did.
