Photo: Rich Polk/Variety via Getty Images; Emma McIntyre/Getty Images
Jimmy Kimmeldoes his research on celebrity name pronunciations.
In an interview withVarietyfollowing theOscars 2023broadcast, show executive producerMolly McNearney— who also happens to be Kimmel’s wife — opened up about his recent hosting gig on Sunday night, including when he pronouncedRihannathe correct way, “ree-ANN-uh,” and not the often-used “ri-AH-nuh.”
“Jimmy isobsessed with pronouncing people’s names correctly,” said McNearney, 45. “There is a guy at the show whose job is to find the pronunciations. We always find video of the person saying their own name on camera. And that is the way you pronounce Rihanna.”
She went on to note how"there’s a whole interview with"the"Umbrella"singer, 35, about it and added, “Jimmy said, ‘I want to call her the way the name that she calls herself.’ Andthat’s how she says itin Barbados.”
“It felt funny to people,” she added. “Now America knows how to pronounce her name, although they won’t. They’ll just assume Jimmy f—ed up, but no, he did not!”
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Rihanna.Arturo Holmes/Getty
According to McNearney, Kimmel, 55, “had two versions of the monologue” whose jokes really depended on the locations of specific celebrities.
RELATED VIDEO: Pregnant Rihanna Stuns in Sheer All-Black Gown Ahead of Her Performance at Oscars 2023
It was a look different fromthe one Rihanna wore earlier in the nighton the red carpet, where she posed for photographers in a partially sheer black Alaïa dress.
source: people.com
