It was the "oopsie" heard around the world. Comedian, talk show and radio show host Steve Harvey hosted the Miss Universe pageant this past weekend and in a 5-minute time frame that would be turned into hundreds of memes, gifs and YouTube videos, accidentally named the wrong contestant as the newest Miss Universe. Contrary to popular belief though, the mistake wasn't enough to get him fired for life as it has just been announced that Harvey has been asked back to host 2016's pageant.
The comedian accidentally named Miss Colombia as Miss Universe, only to announce seconds later that the winner was in fact Miss Philippines. Both women were clearly in shock as the mistake was announced, apologies were made and the crown was removed from one woman and placed on the other.
Despite his profuse apologies, both in person and on social media (he was clearly so flustered that he wound up spelling both countries wrong on social media—cringe), Harvey was still the butt of many a joke over the next few days. As per usual, some took it too far and took to using racial slurs to express their disappointment and/or disgust at the way things played out. The talk show host handled it all with class and dignity, though, taking full responsibility even though later photos and reports showed flaws with both the teleprompter and the cue cards.
It was most likely his grace under pressure that played a part in Harvey getting invited back to give it another shot-that and the fact that Mark Shapiro, the chief content officer of WME IMG (the company that owns the Miss Universe Organization), was a fan of Harvey's hosting skills. "He was funny, he was informative, he's high energy, he's got a great following," Shapiro told the Jim Rome show. "I definitely want him back, and I would hate to see him not come back. He's going to want a shot to redeem himself."
Shapiro is all about letting bygones be bygones, especially when it was clearly an honest mistake. "The world forgives, the world forgets," he said. "It could happen to the best of us. He was so well intended, and he's such a good guy, and it was really such a mistake that I hope people don't hold this over him other than for just a good laugh and let it pass."
Catch the now-infamous flub below.
