Emma Watson was the first big winner at today's MTV Movie Awards, taking home the new combined-gender Best Actor award for her performance as Belle in Beauty and the Beast.
An honour, sure, but Watson took to the stage and delivered a lengthy, earnest speech that seemed more suited to a Nobel Peace Prize winner than someone collecting a mini popcorn bucket statuette.
Here's her speech in full, courtesy of Elle:
"Wow. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Firstly, I feel I have to say something about the award itself. The first acting award in history that doesn't separate nominees based on their sex says something about how we perceive the human experience. MTV's move to create a genderless award for acting will mean something different to everyone. But to me, it indicates that acting is about the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes. And that doesn't need to be separated into two different categories."
"This is very meaningful to me. Both to be winning the award and to be receiving it from you, Asia [Kate Dillon, who presented the award]. Thank you for educating me in such - in such an inclusive, patient, and loving way. Thank you so much. I think I'm being given this award for a performance as an actor, but it doesn't feel like that what it's really for, although I am very grateful if you did think that I did a good job because the whole singing part of the situation was pretty terrifying - yeah, not kidding about that part!"
"But more seriously, I think I am being given this award because of who Belle is and what she represents. The villagers in our fairy tale wanted to make Belle believe that the world is smaller than the way she saw it, with fewer opportunities for her - that her curiosity and passion for knowledge and her desire for more in life were grounds for alienation. I loved playing someone who didn't listen to any of that. I'm so proud to be a part of a film that celebrates diversity, literacy, inclusion, joy, and love the way that this one does."
"I want to thank Linda Woolverton for writing the original Belle, Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont for writing what the animated movie was based on, and Paige O'Hara for playing Belle in the original. And I want to thank every single person who voted for me. Thank you so much. Taraji [P. Henson], I can't see you, but Daniel [Kaluuya], James [McAvoy], Hailee [Steinfeld], all of you, it's a privilege to have been nominated alongside you. Lastly I want to thank any one and everyone who had anything to do with giving me this opportunity and for supporting me on that journey. You know who you are, and I can't thank you enough. Thank you so, so much."
So ... that was a lot. Noble though the sentiments were, viewers who'd tuned in to the MTV Movie Awards - a snappy, two-hour award show usually associated with fun stunts and scandalous outfits - couldn't help but wonder if the Harry Potter star was guilty of taking the event a little too seriously:
Emma Watson's speech about how Belle and beauty & beast is some feminist milestone has me like #MTVAwards pic.twitter.com/jsK11Ahmdq
— sarah hanlon (@flatshanlon) May 8, 2017
Emma Watson is giving this profound speech. girl. its the #MTVAwards .. not the Oscars. sit down already.
— DeAndrea (@myde_deedalee) May 8, 2017
Me after Emma Watson's speech #MTVAwards #MTVMovieAwards pic.twitter.com/CXoEB3v5Hy
— Bethany Jane (@b3thanyjane) May 8, 2017
me when emma watson was giving her speech #MTVAwards pic.twitter.com/o7jYVHYy3N
— malcadamia nutt (@mallorymatia) May 8, 2017
I love me some Emma Watson but this speech, Lord this speech...it's golden popcorn not an Oscar #MTVAwards
— Nicole (@ScreamBeautiful) May 8, 2017
Still ... we've never received an MTV Award, so what do we know.