The 94th Academy Awards, scheduled to air on March 27, 2022 and it will for the first time since 2018 have a host, an ABC executive said on Tuesday.
Craig Erwich, the president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, confirmed the decision during the winter Television Critics Association virtual press tour, Variety reported.
Erwich did not specify who would get the gig. “It might be me,” he joked. He said he was confident that Will Packer, the producer organizing this year’s telecast, would pick the right person.
Erwich stated;
Will really has his pulse on popular culture and entertainment. I know he has a lot in store and we’ll have more details to share soon.
The last entertainer to host the Academy Awards was ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, back in 2018.
However, in 2019, the award ceremony was plagued by controversy after resurfaced homophobic jokes and tweets caused comedian Kevin Hart, who was the chosen host, to stand down, causing the group behind the Oscars carry on without a host.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences did the same in 2020 and 2021 — the years the best picture trophy went to Bong-Joon Ho’s “Parasite” and Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland,” respectively.
The film academy confirmed on Tuesday that veteran director Glenn Weiss will return this year to helm the telecast.
Weiss has extensive experience directing live televised events, including six previous Oscars shows, according to the academy.
Packer in a statement said;
You need someone with the deep technical knowledge and creative insights of Glenn to create an Oscars show that truly celebrates a global love of film.
The academy hopes this year’s telecast will defy expectations and draw a decent-sized audience.
The ratings for the Academy Awards have been in a steep decline over the last decade as cord-cutting and streaming video have eclipsed linear television viewership.
The ratings for last year’s Oscars plunged to an all-time low, drawing a paltry 9.85 million total viewers.
Nominations for the Oscars will be announced on February 8.
