Comedian and actor Kevin Hart was honored with the Kennedy Center's Mark Twain Award for American Humor, Reuters reported.

Comedy stars like Dave Chappelle, Chelsea Handler and Jerry Seinfeld honored their co-star's career with a mix of humor, banter and emotion at Sunday night's ceremony. 

"You remind me why I love comedy so much," said Chappelle, a previous honoree, addressing Kevin Hart from the Kennedy Center stage.

The comedian joked that he turned down a trip to Jamaica to attend.

"It's an honor to know someone like you. I really wish you had come when I won this award myself," continued Dave Chappelle. 

Kevin Hart became the 25th winner of the "Mark Twain" award for American humor, among the previous winners of which, in addition to Chappelle, there are also Adam Sandler, Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Stewart. 

Hart called the award "amazing" and thanked his colleagues for "showing up".

Known for his roles in films such as Cop for a Day, Agent and 1/2, Pandiz Expert, Fatherhood and others, he has achieved success as a comedian, film and television actor, producer and businessman.

In 2022, Kevin Hart launched the media company HARTBEAT.

Chelsea Handler teased Hart for saying he was destined for greatness as a guest on her show at the turn of the century. 

"It was clear from the moment we met that he was destined for superstardom, especially since he told me himself that it was his destiny," she said.

"I admired his drive and his drive and his determination and his relentless hard work. They brought him here tonight, where the talk show host he once told was destined to be a superstar is now handing him Lifetime Achievement Award," Handler added.

Jerry Seinfeld, Keith Robinson, Chris Rock also spoke about the man and comedian Kevin Hart. 

In 2018, Kevin Hart stepped down as host of the following year's Academy Awards and apologized for the "insensitive" words he had posted on the former gay social network Twitter.

Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter said the incident did not cause her to second-guess whether to present him with the award.

"The thing about comedy is that it makes everyone a little uncomfortable," she said.

The award, named after the famous American humorist Mark Twain, was established in 1998. The award is presented by the Kennedy Center for the Arts to individuals whose social commentary has had an impact on society comparable to that of Twain.

Previous winners include Julia Louis-Dreyfus, David Letterman, Lily Tomlin, Carol Burnett, Jay Leno, Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy. 

Follow the channel of