Presenters set for Oscar night. (But who else would you love to see?)
Thursday, March 9, 2023 at 6:23PM By Nathaniel R
The complete list of presenters is in for the 95th Academy Awards. They are… Riz Ahmed (best live action short 2021), Halle Bailey (the new Little Mermaid), Halle Berry (best actress 2001), Antonio Banderas, Elizabeth Banks, Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain (best actress 2021), John Cho, Glenn Close (perennial bridesmaid and future Honorary Oscar recipient obviously you don't need to be psychic to know that), Jennifer Connelly (best supporting actress 2001), Paul Dano, Ariana DeBose (best supporting actress 2021), Cara Delevingne, and Harrison Ford. And that's not all...
We'll also get Andrew Garfield, Hugh Grant, Danai Gurira, Salma Hayek Pinault, Kate Hudson, Samuel L. Jackson (recent Honorary Oscar recipient), Dwayne Johnson, Michael B. Jordan, Mindy Kaling, Nicole Kidman (best actress 2002), Troy Kotsur (best supporting actor 2021), Eva Longoria, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Andie MacDowell, Jonathan Majors, Melissa McCarthy, Janelle Monáe, Elizabeth Olsen, Deepika Padukone, Pedro Pascal, Florence Pugh, Questlove (best documentary 2021), Zoe Saldaña, John Travolta, Sigourney Weaver and Donnie Yen.
It’s a curious mix and, as ever, it's weirdly less big-screen related than it should be with a lot of people who are more television oriented (Delevingne, Louise-Dreyfus, Kaling, Longoria, etc…). Nothing against them mind you (in some cases we’re fans) but this is the Oscars, so shouldn’t it be movie stars?
As ever the list is short on classic stars – and though we hate to admit it as it means we’re getting up there in years too… the “senior” stars are now essentially 1980s icons. So at least we’re getting Close (a perennial of course), Ford (great choice), Travolta (who the producers are weirdly obsessed with), and Weaver (great choice) … Why it’s always Travolta? Mix it up a little, producers!
Also why not beg Meryl Streep to show? It would be fun to see her at a ceremony where she wasn’t involved, to just acknowledge that she’s an actual celebrity and not just a perennial nominee.
One thing we would die to see on the Oscar stage that would surely be a moment… is some random shout-out to an entire lineup from years past. (In short, celebrate the history and tradition rather than be weird about the past by pretending it doesn’t exist!) For example, since Will Smith can’t present Best Actress this year there’s an unexpected opportunity to do something different.
Wouldn't it have been awesome, for example, to have a mini tribute to the Best Actress nominees of, let’s say, 1987.
Imagine them all onstage: Holly Hunter, Glenn Close, and Sally Kirkland, reading the nominees aloud while "Mary Louise" Streep blows a kiss and hands the envelope to Cher to open since she won in that all-timer of a Best Actress lineup.
If 1987 is too “old” for today’s history-averse producers, it’d even be thrilling to see like a 5th anniversary shout out to the actresses of 2018 and have Yalitza Aparacio, Glenn Close, Lady Gaga, and Melissa McCarthy read the nominees with Olivia Colman tasked with opening the envelope.
Just imagine it. Bliss.
What presenters do you long to see that the Academy would never invite?
Reader Comments (21)
Travolta because Olivia Newton-John (in memoriam) maybe? Or because he is a living meme. Or they hope another “Adele Dazeem” moment to happen.
Cara Delevingne giving Costume Design… obviously.
In the absence of Will Smith, I am hoping that Chris Rock will present Best Actress. That would bring the house down.
let glenn close present best picture - she deserves top billing after all the heartache the academy has put her through
Since he SHOULD have won last year, Andrew Garfield should give out Best Actress. I'm not bitter.
Anyways, I don't know about who they should ask to present/invite, but it's weird the Academy doesn't lean more on anniversaries and stuff. 25 years since Titanic won so let's get Kate and Leo to do something, etc.
John Travolta again? Seriously. Stop. He's a fucking embarrassment.
I would like to have seen Keke Palmer (but she has just had a baby), Jennifer Coolidge and Aubrey Plaza as they always deliver excellent bits. I also wish we had some red carpet stars like Zendaya, Timothee, Taylor Russell and Anya Taylor-Joy.
Dream presenters for this ceremony would be:
- Shirley MacLaine presenting Best Actress (to commemorate the 40th anniversary of her Oscar win)
- Leonardo DiCaprio & Kate Winslet presenting Best Picture (to commemorate 25 years since the Titanic win)
- Barbra Streisand & Robert Redford presenting Best Original Song (50 years since The Way We Were win)
- Glenn Close & Michael Douglas reunited to present an award
- Angela Bassett & Laurence Fishburne reunited to present an award
- Ben Affleck & Matt Damon presenting Original screenplay (celebrating 25 years since their oscar win)
- Julie Andrews & Anne Hathaway reunited to present an award
I think Halle Berry will present Best Actress. Would it be to Michelle Yeoh or Cate Blanchett? That’s the question. If I would be an Academy awards member I would probably only know who to vote for on the last moment haha. They are two extraordinary performances, could they tie please? :-)
Oh, I can see Travolta introducing In Memoriam, and I am already crying!
I think they should get Val Kilmer, even if he has to type his lines. It'd be emotional but uplifting since he is in remission right now.
They could make Sally Kirkland and Melissa Leo to present best actress in honor of Andrea Riseborough
Is Gaga performing Hold My Hand?
Is a 15 year anniversary a thing? If so, let the Coen brothers present Best Picture to another pair of directors!
It would be nice to see 80's legends Weaver and Close present Best Actress
This is a big improvement over the past 2 years in my opinion in terms of star quality. It's hard to quantify but excluding the previous year acting winners who are default invited:
Last year in terms of Hollywood Royalty we had Liza, Costner, the Pulp Fiction trio, and... Jake Gyllenhaal? Chris Rock? Lupita Nyongo? Woody, Snipes and Rosie?
Year before (COVID Oscars) was Rita Moreno, Harrison Ford, Halle Berry, Reese Witherspoon, Angela Bassett
This year we have Ford, Berry, Travolta, and Jackson again, plus Close, Weaver, Kidman, Hugh Grant, and that's before we get to a tier of Connelly, Garfield, The Rock, Pugh, McCarthy... it's a much deeper list of movie stars than we've recently had.
Obviously would like to see even more a-listers, but don't we think they ask Leo and Hanks and Charlize and Denzel and de Niro and Julia every year if they will present and they just usually say no?
It's a shame that the Producers of this show actually hate Old Hollywood legends and classic cinema. There's still so much amazing talent to get as presenters.
Ann Blyth
Glynis Johns
Dick Van Dyke
Kim Novak
Eva Marie Saint
Shirley Maclaine
Jack Nicholson
Warren Beatty
Faye Dunaway
Angie Dickinson
Lee Grant
Estelle Parsons
True film lovers would salivate over the prospect of these legends. But no we'll get Jennifer Lopez or some TikTok star.
*Sigh*
Peter -- i agree it's a deeper bench than usual! I'm glad about that. I just dont get what their criteria is... like the Eva Longoria thing really confuses me! I see her on red carpets a lot but i just dont get it for Oscar night. She rarely appears in movies and is mostly a television actress (and even then she hasn't headlined a series in several years) Nothing against her, though!
par -- yes, by all means. Glenn Close for Best Picture. (although watch them make her give out Best Actress)
Jack Nicholson's health wont allow him to attend. And after the Lá Lá Land fiasco, I dont think Beatty and Dunaway Will be invited again
Eva Longoria (and Cara Delevingne) both star in Tell It Like a Woman. Isn't it very likely that both are there to introduce the "Applause" performance as representatives of the movie?
But yes, there ARE some interesting people who could be invited. Catherine Deneuve, Julie Andrews, Julie Christie, Shirley McLaine, Charlotte Rampling, Coppola, Scorsese, Robert Redford, Clint Eastwood, Pacino, De Niro....and the usual Uber A-Listers such as Denzel, Julia, Leo, Clooney.
Gaga wont perform.
It feels like Anna Kendrick and Jennifer Anniston present every year.
Anniston has never even been in a nominated movie, in any category.
It seems like she is perpetually invited due to her tabloid appeal.
If Brad attended/attends, there Will/would be countless headlines and clickbaits about their loved up reunion, How they are getting remarried and How she is pregnant with triplets.
I know I'm late to respond, but I am still hopeful for a Dick Van Dyke & Julie Andrews reunion and presentation. Maybe in honor of the 60th Anniversary of Mary Poppins, but that would put them into 2025 which is getting, er, hopeful. Of course they should do Best Picture, but they'd probably get shunted aside to Best Song or something.
Said this in another thread awhile back but it’s been 30 years since 93
Holly hunter and Anna paquin (with or without Jane) would be a dream!!!!
Could also
Liam Ralph and Ben.
Anthony and Emma
Kids of Jurassic park
Michelle Daniel and Winona
Ming Na Wen and Tsai Chin