Chris Rock is Your Oscar Host ...Again
Wednesday, October 21, 2015 at 3:41PM Kieran, here. It was officially confirmed earlier this morning that Chris Rock will host the 88th Academy Awards. This will be Rock's second stint as Oscar emcee after his gig at the 2004 Oscars (held in 2005...get it right). I want to first say that I am a Chris Rock fan. His social commentary, particularly about race in America, is incredibly incisive. That being said, I can't say I'm super eager to see Rock as host again. If you hold Chris Rock up against the people who have hosted since he first did, he'd rank him somewhere in the lower middle; he didn't reach the gold standard that was Hugh Jackman in 2008 nor was he the abysmal basement that was Seth MacFarlane in 2012.
With many eyes on the annual announcement of the Oscar host, we wonder why more attention isn't paid to who's actually producing the show. They're the ones determining the architecture of an Oscar telecast much more so than the host. Jackman was a terrific host but Bill Condon really deserves a lot of credit for hiring great writers and coming up with that simple yet cohesive structure of the show. On the lower end of the spectrum, Anne Hathaway has a better Oscar hosting gig in her than what we saw -- blame the writing and the production (and James Franco) for that show.
The Chris Rock announcement is unsurprising (save for their earlier buzz that we'd have two hosts... perhaps a duo turned them down?). AMPAS often retreats to someone familiar after they experiment with a frisky choice and it (arguably) doesn't go well. Think Billy Crystal in reaction to Franco and Hathaway and Ellen DeGeneres in reaction to Seth MacFarlane. After Neil Patrick Harris' hosting gig received mixed response at best, I suspected that a familiar face, most likely a stand-up comedian would get the job. Fingers crossed that Rock has learned his lesson and doesn't make an ill-timed "Who is Michael Fassbender?" joke.
Are you excited to see Chris Rock return as host?
Reader Comments (35)
I think you need to revise your host ranking. Jackman was the abysmal basement (or perhaps it was just the writing he had to work with). Rock was pretty weak too though, much as I like him otherwise.
I wish it was one or two of the other (and ideally female) SNL alums.
Rock will be a welcome change from square white folks - DeGeneres and NPH were the pits - and he's a timely (for the Oscars) choice, in the news lately with incisive social commentary and a well-received 2014 movie.
Jimmy Kimmel should Host the Oscar, or bring back Steve Martin and add Martin Short. I can only imagine how great it would be...no singing, but plenty of great jokes.
AMY SCHUMER, that is all
Thrilled with this news. I think Chris Rock has learned (and grown as an artist) from his previous time hosting. No one's first time hosting is ever the greatest so you have to cut them slack and hope for the best in subsequent outings.
I just remember both Jon Stewart and Steve Martin being kind of hit and miss their first time, and knocking it out of the park the second, so hopefully that will bode well for Rock.
And if we get another all-white acting lineup, he will have a field day.
Personally, I really don't care about who hosts and who produces. I care about who's nominated and who wins.
I just hope that Pegg and/or Frost gets it at some point.
Ben: I hate that this host choice leaves it possible that that's going to happen again. It's not AS uber farcical as last year (at least we can be secure knowing that at least an actor playing a 100% fictional character is going to get in to Lead Actor this year), but I hope this is an "it's always darkest before dawn" scenario.
Steve Martin was the best host I've ever seen. I miss him so much!
Rock was terrible this first time-this is like bringing back Seth MacFarlane. Go with Steve, Ellen, Whoopi, or someone new.
They need to start thinking outside the box. Why not put together an actor and an actress who have lost the Oscar multiple times and just let them host the show?
It already feels like we're going to have another all-white acting sweep, with our only hope hanging on Del Toro, Jackson, and Elba (in that order). I wonder if this will actually happen again, or whether the Academy will be smart enough to sit up and take notice of some films and performances that may be off their radar, and at least pretend to like performances just to apologize for their egregious 2014. I wonder how Rock would frame this scenario, and whether it'd just be a laughing matter. I hope it doesn't come to this but Rock would probably be the best person to handle that situation.
The notion that Jackman is the "gold standard" just shows how impossible it is to be a good Oscar host. They just need to turn this shit over to a robot already and be done with it.
I like him in small doses. I hope he gives a kick-ass opening speech and then vanishes.
I've always thought that the powers that be should have given Tracy Ullman a try.
But Chris Rock will have to do.
It would be nice if the producers of the show would pick a host that cares about the awards, and film in general, rather than showing disdain, ignorance, and apathy as Rock has. Also, saying a joke forcefully does not make it funny or clever, just loud.
In my opinion, he's a poor choice.
I have hope for the show with Chris Rock as host. That's more than I could say for other potential hosts (like Franco or MacFarlane, although I did like the latter's Sound of Music gag when introducing Christopher Plummer).
Remember, Billy Crystal's 2012 gig wasn't in reaction to the Hathaway-France fiasco; It was in reaction to Ratner-gate and Eddie Murphy's subsequent withdrawal.
Give Amy Schumer one or two more hit movies and it's on at the Oscars.
Chris Rock as Oscar host seems passe...
my guess is this is nerves based on all the flak they got last year for lack of diversity. Chris Rock already called them out for it the last time he hosted.
Ugh - Chris Rock was dreadful as host in 2005. Ellen, Whoopi and Billy are great. Steve Martin and Hugh Jackman had great moments. Neil Patrick Harris, Anne Hathaway, Seth McFarlane and Jon Stewart also did their best but could have been better. The worst hosts in recent years - IMO - James Franco, David Letterman and Chris Rock.
I agree with other posters - they should scrap the host altogether and just let viewers concentrate on the nominees and winners.
As Oscar host, didn't Chris Rock do a series of person in the street interviews to show how nobody had ever heard of the nominees, and how no-one was interested in them? He sneered at the nominees as being irrelevant, which is not what a host honouring artists should do AT ALL.
His repeated scorn of Jude Law is something a professional doesn't do. It can damage careers. Unfair, and uncalled for.
Why the f*** did they pick this idiot? I like the Oscars, I respect the people nominated. I want to see them honoured and appreciated, not made fun of.
Jude Law remains butt hurt from Rock's routine which is ridiculous considering the public never embraced him to begin with. They were asking the very question Rock asked: Who is Jude Law and why is he in every movie?
Chris Rock is a fine choice. I hope he rightfully skewers the all-white vanilla acting lineup we're bound to get this year. #OscarsSoWhite. Nor do I agree with the established consensus that he was one of the "bad" past hosts. Save that for your Seth McFarlane, Neil Patrick Harris, and David Letterman entries. Rock doesn't deserve to be in that company.
Although I'm no Chris Rock fan, I could get on board with Peggy Sue's comment, "I hope he gives a kick-ass opening speech then vanishes". But - in his comment - Travis says everything on the subject I wish I'd said. Also I thought Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin were terrific hosts a few seasons back. Displaying knowledge, respect and affection for films; both smart and both very very funny.
At least it's not the monstrosity known as MacFarlane....
It's looking like an all-white acting lineup again this year, which is a big WTF especially two years in a row. But what can Oscar do when all the great actors of color have moved to TV and all the "prestige" movies are disinterested in them? I think the chances of this not happening hinges on Will Smith and Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Concussion- no idea how that will turn out but that trailer sure was baity. I'm not confident in Beasts of No Nation- not convinced Oscar will so readily hand out awards to Netflix like the Emmys did.
Oh, and as for Rock as host...I'm all in. Not surprised he was chosen- he said last year while promoting Top Five that he was interested in hosting again so I thought it would be a matter of time before they asked him again,
Frankly, no host recently has been a "gold standard" in the past few years the best IMO 1. Ellen 2. Martin/Baldwin 3 Jackman 4 Crystal 5 Macfarlane 6 NPH 7 Hathaway/Franco
As crude as Macfarlane was I still preferred him to NPH (who has never been so dull as he was hosting last year) and Hathaway and Franco who both were just truly, unequivocally awful.
He'll be nothing like NPH which is all I can ask for right now.
Every year I hope they'll bring Whoopi back, but...I don't think she even wants to. Oh well.
I really wanted Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne, Jude Law, and Jason Statham to host as a quartet, but Chris Rock will do.
Aaron: Nominated Jason Mitchell for Straight Outta Compton in Supporting Actor. The lineup will have at least one black person and likely the most deserving one in film this year.
I liked Chris the last time and I think he's a good pick. He definitely was one of the better hosts from recent years.
Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda
Strongly disagree that Hugh was a highlight or Seth MacFarlane or Neil Patrick Harris was bad
Let's just all agree this is subjective and that James Franco/Anne Hathaway was the worst and Steve Martin is the best