Horror dominated the Emmy Awards with Apple TV series “Widow’s Bay” taking home 14 wins, but a surprising B-movie also got the spotlight briefly in a funny bit courtesy of host Mariska Hargitay.
The actress is best known for her role as Olivia Benson in “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” but she made her acting debut in Empire Pictures’ 1985 creature feature, Ghoulies. Hargitay acknowledged her role during the Emmy’s Primetime ceremony last night in a comedic gag, quipping, “Jamie Lee Curtis isn’t the only scream queen around here.“
Hargitay explained to the audience that she got her start in Ghoulies, “where a monster pops out of a toilet.”
The 1985 horror-comedy from producer Charles Band’s (Puppet Master, Subspecies) Empire Pictures is directed by Luca Bercovici (Rockula) from a script he co-wrote with producer Jefery Levy.
It sees a young man, Jonathan Graves (Peter Liapis), and his girlfriend inheriting an ancestral home, where his Satanic father happens to be buried, and becoming possessed by power and the ability to summon tiny demons. Hargitay played the role of Donna, a friend to the couple who doesn’t fare well against the tiny creatures.
One of which was featured on the film’s cover box: the infamous toilet dweller.
Affirming the preposterousness of the film’s description, the Emmy host proved that Ghoulies is, in fact, a real horror movie by sharing a clip of the pint-sized demon on the attack.
More recently, Bercovici and Levy reclaimed domestic rights to their cult film with plans to develop a new trilogy for a new generation.
Ghoulies isn’t the type of fare to make its way into an awards ceremony, especially not the Emmys, which makes this fun gag an amusing win.
If you missed it, you can stream the 78th Annual Emmy Awards on Peacock now.
