LOS ANGELES, Feb 6, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The upcoming Academy Awards, the
biggest night in Hollywood, will take place this year without a host for the
first time in three decades, organizers said Tuesday.
“We can confirm that there will be no host,” a spokesperson from the
Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences told AFP without elaborating.
The Academy was left hostless after actor and comedian Kevin Hart pulled
out of the gig in December following a backlash on social media over
homophobic tweets he made several years ago resurfaced.
Gala organizers who have been struggling to overcome a steady decline in
viewership scrambled to find a replacement but finally settled for a ceremony
with no emcee.
Industry insiders said the producers of the 91st Academy Awards on February
24 plan to try out a new format with a selection of Hollywood A-listers
introducing various segments.
The last time the Oscars went without a host was in 1989, when actor Rob
Lowe was raked over the coals for his musical duet with Snow White.
In recent years, several other hosts have also come under criticism.
Actor Neil Patrick Harris got rumbled over his 2015 effort and said he
would never do it again. James Franco and Anne Hathaway were a dud in 2011.
The previous two Oscars have been hosted by late night funnyman Jimmy
Kimmel. Comedian Chris Rock emceed in 2005 and 2016, and TV talk show host
Ellen DeGeneres hosted in 2007 and 2014.