Kevin Hart received one of comedy’s highest honors, the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, at a ceremony held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.
“Life without a gamble is a weird thing, man,” he said in his speech, per USA Today. “‘Cause that’s acting as if you know. You don’t know. You don’t know what your future will be. You don’t have the answers.”
He continued, “So sometimes a gamble is the best way to define what will be you or ultimately become the best version of you.”
Kevin accepted the award, given to those who have “impacted American society,” before a crowd of loved ones and peers, including Jimmy Fallon, Tiffany Haddish, Chris Rock, Chelsea Handler and Dave Chappelle, who shared some words about the star.
“You remind me … why I love comedy so much,” Chappelle told Kevin before joking, “I am honored to know somebody like you. I really wish you had come when I won this award.”
Rock praised Kevin for finding his own voice and surpassing him as a star, and Handler claimed she long knew Hart was “destined for superstardom.”
“It was clear from the moment we met that (Hart) was destined for superstardom, especially when he told me he was destined for superstardom,” Handler said. “I admired his pluck … as well as his drive and determination and the unrelenting hard work that brought him here tonight, to a place where the talk show host he told he was destined for superstardom is now presenting him with a lifetime achievement award.”
Kev joins previous recipients Chappelle, Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor and more.
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