STAGE FRIGHT
Hosting the Academy Awards isn’t the plum gig it once was
The “most thankless job in town” just got even more difficult.
The Oscars have a long-standing host problem, but Kevin Hart’s swift downfall over old anti-gay tweets has led to bigger questions about the gig and the liability of social media histories.
It’s just the latest controversy for the organization that puts on the Academy Awards, which is trying to combat declining ratings for its marquee event while weathering the pressure of being a focal point for the shortcomings of the entertainment industry as a whole. “I think it’s embarrassing,” Matthew Belloni, the editorial director of The Hollywood Reporter, said about the academy’s decision to pick Hart. “It shows that they either didn’t vet this host properly, or they did vet him and didn’t think this would be an issue. And both are a little troubling.”
Hart seemed to fit the bill for what the academy was looking for. “He checks all the boxes for a show like the Oscars,” Belloni said. “He’s a legitimate movie star. He’s a funny guy and can handle the standup element of the show. And he has a gigantic social following. And to the academy, that’s important. They want someone who can bring a new audience to the show.” But Oscars hosts have always been subjected to a lot of scrutiny. Poor or even mediocre performances can haunt people for years (Anne Hathaway and James Franco). Off-colour jokes have a way of festering in the cultural consciousness (think of Seth MacFarlane’s “we saw your boobs” song, or Chris Rock’s Asian jokes). And even when things go decently enough, everyone is handed the right envelope and nobody walks away offended, the hosts can still be blamed for poor ratings. “Oscars host has become a not very desirable job in Hollywood. Very few people see an upside,” Belloni said. “You put a huge target on your back.”
People have stepped down from being the public face of the event amid controversy, as producer Brett Ratner did in 2011 for anti-gay slurs. But Hart’s case is a little different. Ratner’s offensive remarks came after he had secured the gig. Hart’s tweets were from almost a decade ago and were well known. But in 2018, an unsavoury social media past can cost someone their job. Just this past summer, the Walt Disney Co. fired director James Gunn from the third Guardians of the Galaxy movie for old tweets in which he joked about subjects including rape and pedophilia. As with Hart, the problematic tweets were amplified by social media outrage. Immediately after Hart was confirmed as host last week, some journalists began tweeting reminders of Hart’s past comments. Shortly afterward, a few publications had written articles about them. The outrage escalated, Hart commented but did not apologize, stoking even more outrage, which culminated with Hart’s announcement that he was stepping down as host of the 91st Academy Awards. As the dust settles, the situation has proved vexing for some in the entertainment business. Actor D.L. Hughley commended Hart for his decision.
“A Comedian says something that offends people and refuses to apologize?” Hughley tweeted. “(Expletive) ’em if they can’t take a joke! Well done #KevinHart.” Snoop Dogg posted an even more colourful Instagram video in support of Hart.
The advocacy organization GLAAD wishes Hart hadn’t stepped down, however. “Hart’s apology to LGBTQ people is an important step forward, but he missed a real opportunity to use his platform and the Oscars stage to build unity and awareness,” said GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.
The film academy has yet to address Hart’s departure. Hart said the film academy told him he had to apologize or he’d lose the gig. He bowed out on his own, and with an apology.
Now everyone has an opinion about who should be named host. A woman? A comedian? Not a comedian? Someone in the LGBTQ community? All of the above? Many keep coming back to Whoopi Goldberg, who has hosted the awards four times. Some have said Ellen DeGeneres, who hosted one of the Oscars’ highest-rated shows, or Tom Hanks, who has a long-standing academy relationship.
Others have said Keegan Michael-Key and Jordan Peele, Will Smith or Lin-Manuel Miranda. Busy Philipps threw her own name out there (“I AM AVAILABLE,” she tweeted). Philipps also proposed Issa Rae, Sarah Silverman, Ali Wong, Samantha Bee, Robin Thede and Aisha Tyler, or “any other woman working in Hollywood right now who wants to.” Stephen King suggested Patton Oswalt (He’s “funny, sharptongued, and he knows film,” King tweeted.)
Some have even proposed Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty. Or no host at all, which has been done several times before, and as recently as 1989.
But the film academy will need to move quickly. The 91st Oscars are less than three months out.