Ricky Gervais was notably absent from much of the Golden Globes telecast Sunday night. While the host was given mostly free reign during the 2011 show, it seemed producers might have limited the bawdy British comedian's appearances during the 2012 show.
Gervais only appeared onstage six times counting his opening monologue and brief goodbye. Meanwhile many of the introductions were handled by the official announcer instead.
In his first appearance on the show, Gervais took the opportunity to crack wise at Justin Bieber's expense. Joking about the famously bogus paternity suit against the singer, he said, "The only way he could have impregnated a girl was with one of Martha Stewart's turkey baster."
Perhaps when it came to joking about celebrities actually in attendance, Gervais was restricted to those who were feeling game. He ribbed Johnny Depp by introducing him as "the man who will wear literally anything Tim Burton tells him to." When Depp walked onstage, Gervais pointedly asked him: "Have you seen The Tourist?" To which Depp replied: "Uhh, um, no."
Madonna looked less thrilled about being the butt of a Gervais joke about being "Like a Virgin." Then Gervais was given the five-second-delay treatment when he was silenced on the telecast after reportedly joking about not being able to "f---ing understand" Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek in Puss in Boots.
Gervais got a big laugh at the expense of Oscar winner Colin Firth, but the unflappable actor gamely shook the host's hand after he joked about his horrible off-screen personality.
"What you don't know about him is he's very racist -- really nasty stuff," Gervais said. "I also saw him punch a little blind kitten. Please welcome the evil Colin Firth." Perhaps the most controversial moment of the night came when the camera cut to the table where The Help actresses Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis were sitting when Gervais mentioned Firth's racism.
At the end of the show, Gervais walked out on stage to offer the briefest goodbye, waving and wishing everyone a good night. His missing screen time was noted on Twitter, where Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron joked, "Just went to pour a glass of milk. Ricky Gervais' picture was on the milk carton. #AWOLatTheGlobes." Meanwhile the official Vanity Fair Twitter asked, "Can it be considered 'hosting' when Ricky Gervais only appears every 30 minutes during the #goldenglobes?"