Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager were left totally shocked by a guest's recent confession on their Today Show segment. E! News Daily Pop host Justin Sylvester stopped by Today studios to chat with the two stars about the upcoming Oscars, and their discussion sparked a heated debate.
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The Today contributor gave the co-anchors his inside scoop on the Academy Awards, revealing just how the voting process happens behind-the-scenes.
Both Hoda and Jenna as well as fans of the show were stunned to hear Justin's explanation, as fans inundated the comments with their qualms about the awards.
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The three got to talking about the complicated process of being nominated for an Oscar and what it takes to win one, revealing how unfortunately talent isn't the only thing it takes to score the major career milestone.
The guest star explained that once an actor nomination is announced, immediately "a lot of different events" take place that they have to attend to promote both themselves and the movie for which they are nominated for.
"There's lunches, there's this, there's a gathering for this," he listed, before continuing with: "You have to show up and show face."
The controversial revelation
They used the example of Beyoncé, who's nominated for her contribution to the King Richard soundtrack with her song, Be Alive. He detailed how: "What Beyoncé has to do is show up to these little things here and there…"
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Hoda interrupted him inquisitively, questioning: "Why can't you just win because your thing is the best?" as her co-star quipped in an exasperated manner: "Because you're Beyoncé?"
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As Justin insisted that regardless of talent, people still have to schmooze, fans took to the comments to express their frustration at the process, writing: "And they wonder why it's not as popular as it once was…" and: "Now I'm losing faith in the Academy. It's a popularity contest not fine art," as well as: "Your talent should speak for itself. Talent should be the only consideration!"
The post was captioned with the frank admission that: "It turns out being the best of the year (or being Beyoncé) is only half the battle.
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