It's Official: Chris Rock Will Host the 2016 Oscars

UPDATE: Somebody start making Chris Rock a "Star Wars" costume, 'cause he'll probably need one. On October 21, ABC confirmed that Rock will return to host the Oscars for a second time. "I'm so glad to be hosting the Oscars," Rock said in a statement. "It's great to be back." Producers David Hill and Reginald Hudlin added, "Chris Rock is truly the MVP of the entertainment industry. Comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, documentarian - he's done it all. He's going to be a phenomenal Oscar host!" The 88th Academy Awards will be broadcast live on Oscar Sunday, February 28, 2016, on ABC. Chris Rock previously hosted the 77th Oscars in 2005.

Original story:

The 2016 Oscars may have already secured a host, if a new report is to be believed.

According to Robot Butt (yes, that's a real website), Chris Rock has been tapped as the next host of the Academy Awards. The site writes that a formal announcement from the Academy is expected any day now; Variety later confirmed that Rock is indeed in talks for the role, though an Academy spokesperson declined to comment.

If true, this would be the second time Rock has hosted, after he helmed the ceremony back in 2005. Initially, new Oscars producers Reginald Hudlin and David Hill had said that they wanted to try a multi-host format, similar to recent telecasts with two hosts (2010's pairing of Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin, and the much-maligned duo of Anne Hathaway and James Franco the following year). But it now appears that plan has been scrapped entirely (thankfully).

Robot Butt says (there's a sentence we never thought we'd type) that Rock beat out other contenders including Ellen DeGeneres, Jimmy Fallon, and Amy Schumer. Schumer reportedly was offered, and turned down, the gig.

Rock seems like a good choice for the job, and as Variety reminds us, he was behind one of the weirder (and funnier) moments in recent Academy Awards history: after joking about Jude Law appearing in so many movies that year, he was chided onstage by a sourpuss Sean Penn. Here's hoping there are plenty more oddities like that on deck if Rock indeed gets the gig.

The Oscars are scheduled for Sunday, February 28, 2016 on ABC.

[via: Robot Butt, Variety]

Photo credit: Caroline McCredie via Getty Images



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