THE 90TH ACADEMY AWARDS

8 p.m. March 4 on ABC

will inevitably win.”

Late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel hosts the Oscars ceremony for the second time. He enjoyed a baptism by fire last year at night’s end, considering he had to get on stage and try to help sort out the confusion.

“Jimmy surprised us all and really proved to be a deft Oscars host last year,” O’Neil says. “Normally, he’s a little too mellow and laidback to think he could be a great host, but he really was a shrewd and deft emcee.”

If the commercials for the ABC telecast are an indications, there will be plenty of references to Envelopegate.

“It will be constant,” O’Neil says with a laugh. “It’s too good a joke not to flog — and the Oscars love to flog a bad joke.”

Because there’s nothing funny about the sexual-misconduct allegations against former heavyweight Hollywood producer and studio head Harvey Weinstein — his reported actions are largely responsible for sparking the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements — O’Neil thinks he will not be referenced.

“I don’t think we’re going to hear Harvey’s name at all on Oscar night,” he says. “(He was) the Oscars’ happy warrior. Harvey redefined the modern Oscar campaign.

“For him to have such a shocking, tragic, horrible fall just hits too personally with Hollywood to mention Harvey. Harvey is an open wound.”

Instead, it is likely to be an night that champions women.

“The Oscars had a breakthrough this year recognizing films with a female perspective,” O’Neil says. “Historically, the Oscars have rarely recognized movies with a female perspective. The last one to win best picture was ‘Million Dollar Baby,’ and that had more testosterone than most other films. This year we have a lot of them.”