It’s no secret Kristen Bell loves a musical number and jumped at the opportunity to break out in song during her monologue at the 2026 Actor Awards on Sunday.
The Nobody Wants This star kicked off the show with some, let’s say, creative stage name suggestions for some of the night’s nominees.
“As you know, this year, the show got a little bit of a facelift. Like many people in this room can understand, we nipped the ‘sag,’ and now it’s just the Actor Awards. But thinking about it got me thinking about rebranding, because at one time or another, everyone has thought about…” Bell began before singing, “A stage name up on the marquees that rolls off the tongue with melodious ease.”
She continued singing, “A stage name to bring you acclaim, to double your luck and to triple your fame / A stage name that says who you are, that tells the whole world, baby, I’m a star.”
Bell went on to suggest some interesting stage names for some of the actors in the room. “But here’s the thing, I feel like the people in this room could be doing so much more with their stage names,” she said.
Some of her suggestions included Jacordy O’Lordy for Jacob Elordi, Teddy Dandaughter rather than Ted Danson, TeyTay in place of Teyana Taylor, Indoctrinate Me instead of Noah Wyle and Jessie Plimes rather than Jesse Plemons. However for Chase Infiniti, Bell said, “No notes.”
“Choose carefully what name goes on your SAG-AFTRA card,” Bell sang as more suggestions for other actors scrolled on the screen behind her. “It’s the name that millions of people might step on on Hollywood Boulevard.”
Elsewhere during the show, Bell also did a bit with Wyle, where the star and executive producer of The Pitt challenged the host to read a script filled with medical terms after she said it would be easy.
“I just happen to have a monologue that [R. Scott Gemmill] wrote for next week’s episode. Perhaps you’d like to give it a go,” Wyle told Bell, who responded, “That’s a weird thing to have.”
Bell then read the monologue in a rushed manner as Wyle timed her because, he said, “Doctor acting is all about timing.”
Throughout the show, the Frozen voice actress also had a little sports competition going with some of the actors. “This is about actors supporting actors, and I am here to change that. Because this year, I am escalating the competition, starting with a table tennis tournament,” Bell explained, adding that different pairings will be playing during the ceremony, starting with Danson and Jackie Tohn.
Ahead of the 2026 awards ceremony, the returning host told The Hollywood Reporter that she’s rehearsed “a lot a lot.” Bell added, “We rehearse the scripts, the beats, the walk-ups, the walk-aways, the camera marks. I practice reading a teleprompter, I practice pretending to not read a teleprompter even though I absolutely am. By show day, it’s basically muscle memory.”
The 32nd annual Actor Awards streamed live on Netflix on Sunday from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles. Find all the winners here, and check out the red carpet looks.
Credit: Source link