Charlize Theron roasted by Seth Rogen, Kristen Stewart at American Cinematheque Awards

LOS ANGELES — Charlize Theron has a hard time taking compliments.

And so, when honored at the American Cinematheque Awards Friday night, most of the "Bombshell" star's celeb pals showed up prepared to roast her instead.

Seth MacFarlane, who starred with Theron in "A Million Ways to Die in the West," kicked off the night with a no-holds-barred set.

When they were filming "A Million Ways" in a remote location, MacFarlane recalled getting a crudely administered B-12 shot from a local medic, "which left a massive bruise on my arm for the next several days," he said. "And during that time Charlize became fond of approaching me when I was distracted and punching the bruise. This happened many dozens of times. I would let out a yelp to which she would respond, 'Suck it up, princess!'"

"So, while to many men Charlize will always be the fantasy woman of their dreams, to me she is the abusive, alcoholic father I never had," MacFarlane cracked.

Seth Rogen, who starred with Theron in this year's rom-com "Long Shot," admitted that it's hard to properly roast the Oscar winner. "Honestly, the worst thing that I can say about Charlize is that I am the best person they could get to present to you," he cracked.

Rogen continued: "Charlize is honestly very difficult to make fun of. She has not done that much weird (stuff) personally. She dated Sean Penn, can you make fun of that? I don't know. It's funny to me. He seems like he cannot take a joke though, so — I should steer clear of that one. All I need is to get added to the long list of (people) Sean Penn has punched in the face."

Then it was Kristen Stewart's turn. "You're looking really good tonight. Dude, I'm j'adoring it," Stewart cracked, throwing down a Dior joke (Theron has long been the face of the French fashion house's J'Adore fragrance).

More seriously, Stewart said her experience starring with Theron in 2012's "Snow White and the Huntsman" stayed with her. “This sounds gay as hell — and by gay I mean incredibly cool — she made me believe in actual magic when I worked with her on, like a silly Snow White movie.”

Jason Reitman, who directed Theron in "Young Adult" and "Tully," noted how uncomfortable all the praise must have been for the star.

"She has no time for nonsense. If you ever want to test that, try giving her a compliment. Here, watch this ...You are so pretty," Reitman crooned into the microphone, causing Theron to cover her face and give him a middle finger salute.

When Theron finally took the stage at the Beverly Hilton, she shared a sense of disbelief that the black-tie affair, which has become a notable stop for stars with big films heading into awards season, had been centered around her.

"I'm really overwhelmed with gratitude for this whole evening ... but this is not something I'm necessarily comfortable with," said Theron, standing on stage in the same ballroom where the Golden Globes are held. "Listening to people saying nice things about you – don't get me wrong, it's awesome, but it doesn't always feel right. ... because I know the truth. I know that so much of what's gotten me to this stage is luck and the kindness of others."

Theron says yes, she worked hard and pushed through adversity through the years, "but luck played a big part, and I'll never forget that."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Charlize Theron roasted by celeb pals at American Cinematheque Awards