Things got a little awkward between Jimmy Kimmel and Malala Yousafzai at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Kimmel approached Yousafzai, 25, during the telecast to ask her very pressing question from a fan named Joanne.
“She asked, your work on human rights and education for women and children is an inspiration–as the youngest nobel prize winner in history, do you think Harry Styles spit on Chris Pine?” Kimmel asked her.
The question was referring to the rumors of a fight between the two actors on the set of “Don’t Worry Darling.”
In response, Yousafzai, who seemed uneasy, said, “I only talk about peace.”
Things got even more uncomfortable for Yousafzai when presenters brought out the real-life “Cocaine Bear,” someone in a bear suit from Elizabeth Banks’ film, and as it paraded down the aisles, it strangely pestered the activist.
Kimmel had to tell the bear leave to Yousafzai alone.
“Cocaine bear, leave Malala alone!” he said, as she looked uncomfortable in her seat.
She responded to the moment on Twitter, re-tweeting the clip from ABC, and writing in the caption, “Treat people with kindness ✌️.”
On Twitter, many were angered by the moment and the question that was asked of the activist, who was shot at age 15 in 2012 for her opposition to the Taliban’s restrictions on female education when she lived in Pakistan.
She was the youngest person to be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 when she was only 17 years old.
“I actually thought Jimmy was about to ask Malala Yousafzai a serious question and then he asked her a stupid one!” one viewer tweeted. “What a stupid segment.”
Another agreed, typing, “If anyone wants to know what’s happening at the oscars: someone in a bear suit is crawling on all fours harassing Malala Yousafzai.”
“Did they really just ask Malala Yousafzai if she thinks Harry Styles spit on Chris Pine for a cheap laugh??” another wrote. “Jesus Christ guys. Be more out of touch.”
Yousafzai attended the 2023 Oscars in support of the documentary, “Stranger at the Gate,” for which she was an executive producer.
The documentary follows the story of a man named Richard McKinney, a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. When he returned home, he was faced with PTSD and was plotting an attack on an American mosque, according to IMDb.