Emmys 2012: Jimmy Kimmel Pulls Off Prank That Draws In Over 25,000 Twitter Users in Minutes

By Shiryn Ghermezian

Jimmy Kimmel warned fans even before the Emmy Awards on Sunday night that he was planning a big prank while hosting the show, and he most certainly got the buzz he wanted to circulate when he pulled it off with the help of Tracy Morgan.

The prank went as follows: while Kimmel was on stage, he asked Morgan to come up and the comedian then began to lie down on the floor very slowly.

"Just lie there for about 10 minutes or so. And when people tune in they will see this on the stage," Kimmel said as Morgan went down on the floor.

Then, Kimmel instructed viewers to post something on Twitter about Morgan passing out at the Emmy Awards (just to get some buzz).

"OMG. Tracy Morgan just passed out on stage at the #Emmys. Turn ABC on right now," Kimmel himself posted on Twitter, and instantly, "OMG Tracy Morgan" became a trending phrase.

By the time the Emmys returned from a commercial break, Kimmel reassured viewers that Morgan was OK, saying it was "just exhaustion." Regardless, by that time over 25,000 tweets were issued in response to the fainting hoax, according to the Inquisitor.

Celebrities to pick up on it and make their own Twitter posts about the hoaxed fainting spell included Stephen Colbert and "Community" star Joel McHale.

Twitter users then took to the social media site to get more details about the incident and get in on the laughs.

"@jimmykimmel what happened?? I missed it!! You joking funny man??" Leo Daniels tweeted.

@LeoRules@jimmykimmel LOL good way to get people to turn it on.." That1Nina said.

Kimmel told Entertainment Weekly earlier in September that he was planning an enormous prank during the telecast that will make the awards ceremony must-see TV.

"I am gonna do something very weird during the show. I think it could possibly be the biggest prank ever pulled, as far as number of people involved.Possibly. I haven't researched it, but it'll definitely be right up there," Kimmel said. "The audience will be a participant in this. So it's important that you watch because you're either going to be in on it or not."

In January, his late-night show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" will move up one hour to 11:35 p.m. Eastern Time, putting him in direct competition with "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and "The Late Show with David Letterman."

For a complete list of the night's winners, click here.