Kate McKinnon honors Ellen DeGeneres with teary speech at the 2020 Golden Globes

Typically, it's the winners who capture our hearts on awards night.

But at the 77th Annual Golden Globes on Sunday, presenter Kate McKinnon stole the spotlight with her moving introduction of Carol Burnett Award honoree Ellen DeGeneres. Recalling DeGeneres's decision to come out on Ellen in 1997, McKinnon emphasized the impact DeGeneres' bravery has had on LGBTQ visibility and acceptance.

"[DeGeneres] risked her entire life and her entire career to tell the truth, and she suffered greatly for it," McKinnon noted, referencing the cancelation of DeGeneres's sitcom a year after going public with her sexuality.

"Of course, attitudes change but only because brave people like Ellen jump into the fire to make them change. If I hadn't seen her on TV, I would have thought, 'I could never be on TV. They don't let LGBT people be on TV.' And more than that, I would have gone on thinking that I was an alien and that I maybe didn't have a right to be here. So, thank you, Ellen for giving me a shot at a good life."

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After taking the stage, DeGeneres thanked McKinnon for her remarks and reflected on her career.

"All I’ve ever wanted to do is make people feel good and laugh," DeGeneres said. "There’s no greater feeling than when someone tells me I’ve made their day better with my show, or that I’ve helped them get through a sickness or a hard time in their lives. But the real power of television for me is not that people watch my show, but that people watch my show and then they’re inspired to go out and do the same thing in their own lives. They make people laugh or be kind or help someone that’s less fortunate than themselves."

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DeGeneres also celebrated the inspirational role Carol Burnett, for whom the award was founded at last year's ceremony, played in her growth as a female comedian.

"I felt like I knew her. I felt like she showed us who she was every week. She was larger than life. We counted on her to make us feel good and she delivered every single week."

In typical Ellen fashion, DeGeneres ended her speech with a tongue-in-cheek quip — thanking her non-existent husband "Mark" and their non-existent children at length.

"I know it wasn’t easy for you or the kids. Rupert and Fiona, go to bed."