Former President Bill Clinton took the stage during Sunday night's Golden Globe awards to present Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln," one of the nominees for best motion picture drama.

The former POTUS' surprise appearance received a standing ovation from the glamorous crowd.

"A tough fight to push a bill through a bitterly divided House of Representatives. Winning it required the president to make a lot of unsavory deal that had nothing to do with the big issue. I wouldn't know anything about that," Clinton sarcastically said to an enthusiastic crowd.

"President Lincoln’s struggle to abolish slavery reminds us that enduring progress is forged in a cauldron of both principal and compromise," Clinton continued. "This brilliant film shows us how he did it and gives us hope that we can do it again."

After the clip of "Lincoln" played, co-host Amy Poehler, who played Hillary Clinton on "Saturday Night Live," came on stage and quipped, "Wow, what an exciting special guest: that was Hillary Clinton's husband!" 

And while everyone seemed to be surprised by the 42nd president's presence, a source tells E! Online, "It was not a last-minute thing. It was in the works and came together about five days ago."

“We had this on lockdown," added DreamWorks co-chair/CEO Stacey Snider to Deadline.

The idea for Clinton's secret appearance reportedly came from Steven Spielberg's camp, with the E! source adding, "Steven and Bill are quite close."

Watch the presentation below:

SEE ALSO: Tina Fey & Amy Poehler's hilarious Golden Globes opening monologue >

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