Chuck Schumer’s Bizarre (And Shade-Filled) Oscar Tweet Has Everyone Scratching Their Heads

The pandemic Oscars have been pretty weird. Produced in part by Steven Soderbergh, it’s envisioned a new, probably one-time-only way to handle a ceremony in the midst of a once-in-a-century public health crisis. There’ve been roaming cameras and CinemaScope framing and lots of talking and almost no clips. But perhaps the weirdest thing about the 2021 Academy Awards didn’t happen on air. It was a tweet from a politician.

Thanks Joe Biden. pic.twitter.com/Wk8MQnjkUf

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) April 26, 2021

Chuck Schumer, the newish Senate Majority Leader, decided to weigh in on Hollywood’s big night. He didn’t, say, congratulate Nomadland‘s Chloe Zhao for being only the second woman to ever win Best Director, or say that the documentary Time got robbed. Instead he posted a very dense, loaded picture of him a) sitting about two feet from a TV screen while b) sitting in what looks like a pretty uncomfortable wooden chair and c) nursing what he called an “ice cold plant-based beer.” He then thanked Joe Biden. For what exactly It’s a mystery.

This year’s Oscars are weird not only because the format is radically different. It’s also weird because few of the nominated films garnered much widespread attention. So when Schumer posted his bizarre tweet about halfway through the show, plenty of people pounced on it.

Some questioned the “plant-based beer” remark — which may have been a subtle trolling of former Trump staffer Larry Kudlow, who recently ranted about how Biden was going to make everyone guzzle beer from plants (aka beer).

— LacyBelle (@LacyBelle827) April 26, 2021

I prefer meat based beer. https://t.co/ufKukjCZq0

— Fusilli Spock (@awstar11) April 26, 2021

I did honestly just think for a second, is there meat in beer

So, that’s how I’m doing! https://t.co/uPRFfvgxuo

— Emerson Collins (@ActuallyEmerson) April 26, 2021

Some were weirded out by the awkward way he held the bottle.

— vibes consultant for fortune 100 companies (@ChrisCaesar) April 26, 2021

Others criticized his close proximity to the TV.

— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) April 26, 2021

Is that how he watches tv https://t.co/4nk6T2zjKi

— Joe Gabriel Simonson (@SaysSimonson) April 26, 2021

gonna kill your eyes sitting that close to the screen dude https://t.co/nYDRDEE86s

— Sonny Bunch (@SonnyBunch) April 26, 2021

Chuck, you’re too close to the tv. https://t.co/fu2WVMPpaz

— Naveed Jamali (@NaveedAJamali) April 26, 2021

And there were those who thought everything about it was strange.

— Brandon Wall (@Walldo) April 26, 2021

wtf is this

Why is he sitting so close to the tv

Why is he holding his drink like that

Why did he say "plant-based beer"

Why did he thank Joe Biden

wtf is this. wtf is happening https://t.co/K4VtKkAK40

— The Partyman (@PartymanRandy) April 26, 2021

There were other jokes, too.

— Jessica O’Donnell (@heckyessica) April 26, 2021

And there were people who found this to be the most entertaining part of a pretty chatty show.

— Matt Gorman (@mattsgorman) April 26, 2021