Photo: The Mercury News
Kevin Hart agreed to host the 2019 Academy Awards, ending the frantic search to fill the role literally no actor wants.
The comedian happily took the role several other celebrities have eagerly turned down.
Hart called hosting the Oscars “the opportunity of a lifetime” and a long-term goal “to join the legendary list of host that have graced that stage.”
Few hosts from the list accept the stressful position more than twice, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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The cons manage to outweigh the pros, such as weeks of preparation and the potential media backlash.
Meanwhile, the host is responsible for keeping the ratings high and the entertainment flowing.
Repeat hosts include Johnny Carson, who hosted five times, Billy Crystal, who hosted nine times, and Bob Hope, who hosted a whopping 19 times, back when people actually enjoyed watching the awards ceremony.
Hart and ABC will face some difficulty reeling the audience back in from last year’s La La Land/Moonlight fiasco, which was the cherry on top of the record low 20 percent plunge in ratings from 2016, according to The New York Times.
Even more so, audiences still have a bitter taste in their mouths from the sexual harassment and gender pay inequality incidents plaguing the film industry along with the sparse diversity among the award nominations. However, actors are valiantly taking these issues into their own hands and striving to make the industry a safer, more just, and widely diverse artistic space.
In terms of the ceremony itself, Hart has the strong potential to swoop in and save us all from yawn-inducing jokes, awkward make-out sessions, and whoever let Seth McFarlane sing “We Saw Your Boobs” on live TV.
Kevin Hart, we’re rooting for you!
