The 2024 Oscars Fooled Everyone With Anatomy Of A Fall's Messi The Dog

The 2024 Oscars had some highs and lows. In between "Oppenheimer" cleaning up, there were laughs to be had thanks to the "The Twins" reunion that became an explicit Batman villain team-up, as well as Jimmy Kimmel's fun-sponge of a monologue that had the cringiest Robert Downey Jr. joke. However, one of the few bits of fun that didn't include Ryan Gosling telling the world he was Ken was an appearance from the other big blue-eyed star of 2024 — Messi the Dog from "Anatomy of a Fall." 

Seen having a whale of a time on the night, Messi even applauded the proceedings. Fans loved seeing the canine getting involved in the action, or so we thought. While it pains us to be the bubble bursters of such a memorable evening, it turns out that Messi wasn't even there during the live event. In fact, through a detailed investigation, we're not even sure those were his paws.

During Kimmel's opening monologue, the camera cut to the now big shot border collie who was seen in the crowd when the host suggested Messi take the titular role in yet another remake of "The Shaggy Dog." Later on, Messi was seen putting his paws together following Robert Downey Jr's award win for "Oppenheimer." Something about the dog's time on camera didn't sit right, though, and for good reason. As revealed via Chris Gardner on X, formerly known as Twitter, Messi had taken a seat before the event started, and all of his appearances were pre-recorded.

While the guest of honor might not have been able to be there on the night, it didn't stop fans from fawning over Messi's inserted appearance and seeing it as a much better approach than the real deal. On X, @Aleeh2109 said, "I find that SO cute because they clearly didn't want to stress him with sound a loud and packed event." Another viewer agreed with @Kit_Gallagher, saying, "Aww, that makes me happy, though, because it could have been super stressful for a dog, even one so well trained."

Unfortunately, some fans weren't too happy about the truth being outed regarding Messi's "appearance." @Coltoncxcx's world seemed rattled, asking, "Is nothing sacred anymore??" followed by crying emojis. However, @Broodybats recognized the talent on display and said, "All the gimmick they did..GIVE MESSI HIS OSCAR." 

Unfortunately, even after all the awards were dished out, the celebrity canine didn't walk away with an award of his own. Fingers crossed, though, that Kimmel's suggestion gets some attention and Messi gets more calls after becoming such a star. Sure, every dog has his day, but we'd be happy to see more with this one.