Iconic actress Kathy Bates shocked viewers during the 2026 Critics’ Choice Awards when she playfully alluded to a cheeky scene from 2025’s sports comedy-drama movie “Marty Supreme.”
The event — which took place on January 4 at the Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport in Santa Monica, California — honored the finest achievements of the past year in filmmaking and television programming, and was hosted by comedian Chelsea Handler for the fourth consecutive year.
Bates, 77, is known for her roles in movies like 1990’s psychological horror thriller “Misery” and 1997’s epic historical romance flick “Titanic,” as well as television shows like sitcom “Disjointed” and legal drama “Matlock” (per IMDb).
Her hilarious actions at the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards surprised her as much as anyone else.
Kathy Bates Licked a Ping Pong Paddle — ‘So Gross!’
GettyIn “Marty Supreme,” Timothée Chalamet’s Marty Mauser, an aspiring table tennis champion, is humiliatingly subjected to a public spanking. The scene in question featured “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary (pictured above), in his acting debut, dishing out said spanking with a ping pong paddle.
At the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards, host Chelsea Handler referenced the scene and told the audience, “Someone in this room has a ping pong paddle under their seat.” Handler continued, saying, “Whoever has it gets to spank Timothée at the afterparty tonight.”
Seconds later, Bates appeared on camera holding said paddle up to her face, at which point she licked it several times while staring directly into the lens. However, after fully committing to the comedic bit, she quickly appeared to regret what she’d done, saying “So gross! I can’t believe I did that!”
Timothée Chalamet Wasn’t There to Witness the Funny Moment
GettyUnfortunately, Chalamet wasn’t in attendance to witness the funny moment.
The “Marty Supreme” star — who’s also know for appearing in the likes 2017’s coming-of-age movie “Call Me by Your Name,” 2023’s musical fantasy film “Wonka,” and the brilliant “Dune” franchise (per IMDb) — eventually arrived at the Barker Hangar over an hour into the show.
Chalamet was accompanied to the event by his superstar girlfriend Kylie Jenner. They made quite the couple and the actor’s navy pinstripe suit complemented Jenner’s black sequined gown perfectly.
Chalamet Won the Best Actor Award
GettyFollowing his arrival, Chalamet found his attendance at the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards to be well worth the effort, as he walked away with the Movie Award for Best Actor.
Moreover, the win came for his performance in the aforementioned “Marty Supreme,” meaning it was also well worth baring his buttocks for the spanking scene referenced by Kathy Bates’ earlier actions (the scene, for the record, apparently took over 40 takes to film!).
Chamalet beat off stiff competition for his victory. The Best Actor category also included Leonardo DiCaprio (“One Battle After Another”), Joel Edgerton (“Train Dreams”), Ethan Hawke (“Blue Moon”), Michael B. Jordan (“Sinners”), and Wagner Moura (“The Secret Agent”).
We’d like to congratulate Timothée Chalamet for his win at the 31st Critics’ Choice Awards and tell Kathy Bates not to be ashamed of her little skit — it was hilarious!
