The Academy Awards is one of the most prestigious, and highest-rated, events annually broadcast on television. And the announcement of who will host the show is often much more anticipated, and controversial, than the motion picture nominees. We should know who (or whom) will be hosting the 2017 show any day now – and the build-up keeps growing.
Each year, the host of The Oscars is under immense pressure to anchor a successful telecast. Even before taking the stage, this person is scrutinized and targeted by the media, and afterwards, he/she is criticized and picked apart for every moment of the show. However, through all the highs and lows of their performances, the hosts of the last five years have beneficially influenced the entertainment industry, future emcees, and American culture.
Eddie Murphy was the frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2007 for his performance in the big screen adaptation of the Broadway musical, “Dreamgirls”. He had won nearly every other honor in this category throughout Awards Season, including the Golden Globe, Critics Choice and Screen Actors Guild awards. However, his over-the-top comedy “Norbit” was being advertised during the Oscar voting period and ultimately caused many voters to choose winner Alan Arkin (“Little Miss Sunshine”) instead. Murphy was so upset when he lost that he actually left the ceremony with his girlfriend.
This may have triggered some bad blood between Murphy and The Academy, but four years later, he was announced as host of the upcoming Oscars. Murphy, who hadn’t done any form of stand-up comedy in nearly 25 years, was an instant hit choice, especially coming-off of the disastrous James Franco/Anne Hathaway pairing the year before. However, just days after his “comeback” movie, the all-star comedy “Tower Heist”, opened, Murphy and show producer Brett Ratner (who directed him in the movie) decided to quit the telecast. This shook-up The Academy, but they had someone else on speed-dial.
Eight-time host Billy Crystal was brought-in for a ninth go-around and, technically, to save the day. Crystal, at the time age 63, had said just a few months prior that he was “itchy” to host again. He took an opportunity during the monologue to poke fun at the Kodak Theatre (where The Oscars are held), which was currently looking for new ownership. And he brought back old bits and skits, including a few that those under 15 may have never seen live on TV before. While some of the reviews criticized Crystal’s material and the show as a whole for being a little stale and simple – the industry basically gave him a pass for stepping-in when needed and doing what Crystal does best: entertain – even if geared for a much older crowd.
The next year, The Academy took another risk by choosing a man who has a very interesting reputation in Hollywood: the creator of “Family Guy” and star of “Ted”, Seth MacFarlane. He’s a talented writer, voice actor and singer, but no one had predicted he could handle such a high-stakes hosting gig. On Oscar Nominations morning, MacFarlane and actress Emma Stone announced the nominees, including an omission of Ben Affleck in the Best Director category for eventual Best Picture winner, “Argo”. It’s rare that the year’s emcee would also take part in Nomination Morning, which is usually headlined by a celebrity and The Academy President. This actually gave industry insiders confidence that MacFarlane’s typical, raunchy brand of humor would be tamed on Oscar Night. As the stars graced down the red carpet, ABC hung a banner covering the Dolby Theatre that read, “Ready Seth Go!”
The Academy hoped they found their next Bob Hope, Johnny Carson and Billy Crystal in MacFarlane – a gentleman who could present himself with class and be a comfortable choice for future ceremonies. However, those who feared controversy would come-out of his performance were absolutely right. MacFarlane’s lengthy opening monologue, unfunny jokes and tasteless musical numbers were panned across the country. At the 2015, “5th Annual Critics Choice TV Awards”, broadcast on A&E, MacFarlane received the Louis XIII Genius Award. During his acceptance speech, MacFarlane remarked on a rollercoaster career and even on going too far with his Academy Awards stint.
The Oscars hit a recent ratings high of nearly 44 million viewers when Ellen DeGeneres was brought back for the 2014 show. She previously hosted back in 2007. It wasn’t her jokes that made DeGeneres the most influential Oscars host of the past decade, but rather the Selfie. During the broadcast, she told longtime friend, Meryl Streep, celebrating her 18th nomination, that she wanted to take a picture with her on a Samsung Galaxy phone and put it up on Twitter. But DeGeneres quickly invited others to be in the photo as well: Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence, Kevin Spacey, Julia Roberts, Channing Tatum, Bradley Cooper, and evening winners Jared Leto and Lupita Nyong’o, along with her brother, Peter. Once the Selfie was posted online, it was re-tweeted so many times that it broke Twitter, which DeGeneres announced later on in the show.
In the past two to three years, it seems everyone in the world hasn’t gotten enough of taking pictures of themselves. When discussing her Selfie with guests on her show, DeGeneres has credited “luck” for pulling it off and advancing popularity in a tech phenomenon that’s been both embraced and prohibited. As Summer 2015, you cannot use a Selfie Stick while walking down Main Street USA at Disneyland. And that Oscars Selfie, by the way, was valued at between $800 million and $1 billion by the company behind the Galaxy phone.
Neil Patrick Harris made a cameo appearance in Disney’s 2011 reboot of “The Muppets”. While taking a call during the Muppet telethon, Harris told the person on the other line, “No, I don’t know why I’m not hosting this thing, either.” Harris had already guest-hosted “Saturday Night Live” and emceed the Tonys, Emmys, TV Land, World Magic and Spike Video Game Awards before finally checking The Academy Awards off his Bucket List in 2015. Even though Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin emceed the 2010 telecast, Harris actually came-out on stage before them to headline a grand production number. And five years later, Harris began his Oscars with another strong song-and-dance showcase. “Moving Pictures” paid tribute to iconic films of the past, spotlighted this year’s crop of nominees and even criticized Hollywood’s obsession with sequels, box office and watching movies on small screens. However, the majority of Harris’s other bits and jokes throughout the rest of the show, including an underwhelming magic trick, weren’t favored by viewers.
Three months later, at the Tony Awards, Harris presented Best Actress in a Musical and said, “Before I present my next award, earlier in the night I made some predictions in that locked box — what? We’re not? I’m not? That’s a drag ‘cause it went so well last time.” Clearly, after some downtime, Harris was able to evaluate his performance in a tongue-and-cheek way and suffered no flack for it – a nice lesson and example for those looking to get into the entertainment business.
And, earlier this year, Chris Rock returned to the Oscar stage, 11 years after a well-received ‘05 show, surrounded by the most hype, controversy and anticipation for a host’s opening monologue in recent memory. Now, let’s keep this in mind, Rock was named host of the 2016 Oscars in Oct. 2015 – a full three months before the nominees were announced. On Oscar Nomination Morning, the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter was #OscarsSoWhite, because, for the second year in a row, there wasn’t a single minority represented in the 20 acting nominees. The nation was outraged and Hollywood was under racial attack. To a large degree, it’s fortunate The Academy happened to choose Rock in a year when this issue would likely be addressed during the telecast. And boy, did Rock delve into it…head-on.
Interestingly, however, once #OscarsSoWhite was initially unleashed on social media, Rock surprised the industry by going “silent” – making no public statements and doing almost no promotion leading-up to the ceremony. He granted an interview to The Hollywood Reporter, believing that “I’m only here because Ellen said ‘No.’” His strategy certainly added to the build-up, but it didn’t quite work, as the ratings were the lowest in eight years, which ABC and The Academy certainly couldn’t have been pleased with.
As for his performance itself, the envelope was expected to be pushed, and he signed, sealed and delivered a highly memorable, quotable and entertaining opening 11-minute set that was warmly embraced and applauded. Rock really could’ve ended it there, but he chose to rub the controversies in even further with a few taped pieces, including a “Man on the Street” segment, that attacked the lack of diversity. He was bold, unafraid and stayed true to his persona and style of comedy.
Billy Crystal, Seth MacFarlane, Ellen DeGeneres, Neil Patrick Harris and Chris Rock each made their mark as host of The Oscars over the last five years, impacting our American culture and views on movies and awards shows. But even though getting the chance to be an Oscar host is highly coveted and extremely competitive, there seems to be a trend among the hosts after the show is over. Whether they were proud of their performances or not, almost all make some type of “I’d never do it again” statement.
The Oscars hasn’t had a back-to-back host since Crystal in 1997 and 1998, with the closest case being Jon Stewart, from “The Daily Show“, in 2006 and 2008. Lately, if someone ends-up hosting The Oscars more than once, there is a considerable gap in between. For Steve Martin it was 7 years, Crystal and DeGeneres each didn’t do it for eight years, and Rock returned after 11 years. DeGeneres was reportedly begged to come back for both the 2015 and 2016 shows, because of her big ratings bump, but declined.
However, it’s these quotes that are the most prominent newsmakers. Following MacFarlane’s uneven show, when asked about a second attempt, he said, “It’s the time commitment. I just don’t think I could do it again.” Harris’s response to the same question just days after his Oscars, “I don’t know that my family nor my soul could take it. It’s a beast. It was fun to check off the list, but for the amount of time spent and the understandable opinionated response, I don’t know that it’s a delightful balance to do every year or even again.” Alec Baldwin said bluntly: “The Oscars is a completely thankless job. It’s really tough. No. Never, never, never [again]. And I enjoyed doing it.”
Showman Hugh Jackman put it the nicest, and likely most genuinely honest out of all the recent emcees. Having been asked back at least twice since his ‘09 stint, he told DeGeneres on her talk show in 2013, when she asked him if he’d ever like to host it again, “Sure, but I would want to be unemployed at the time.” The exposure is phenomenal and opportunities grand, but these men and women have proven that hosting The Academy Awards is a great challenge – a beast that requires so much time and energy – and one that is impossible to master.