Oscars 2022: Trio of Hosts Revealed on 'Good Morning America'
The Oscars will be hosted by three comedians, with producer Will Packer choosing to go a different direction than the typical awards show format. Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes will share hosting duties of the 94th Academy Awards on March 27, Good Morning America revealed Tuesday morning.
The trio will be the first to host the Academy Awards since Jimmy Kimmel emceed the 2018 ceremony. The Oscars went without hosts in 2019, 2020 and 2021. The last time there were three hosts at the Oscars was 35 years ago when Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn and Paul Hogan emceed in 1987. Never before have three women hosted; the only time multiple women hosted was 45 years ago at the 1977 awards when Ellen Burstyn and Jane Fonda hosted alongside Warren Beatty and Richard Pryor.
JUST ANNOUNCED: Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and Regina Hall will be the leading ladies to host this year's #Oscars!#OscarsOnGMA pic.twitter.com/bAOf0pnXCP
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 15, 2022
Producer Packer was reportedly considering a "three-act" structure for the 2022 show, where each portion would be hosted by two different emcees, according to Variety. Packer met with several stars over the past few weeks, including Mad Men star Jon Hamm, who only backed out last weekend, sources told Variety. Schumer, Sykes, and Hall are now the only stars still in the mix, the outlet reported. Hall previously worked with Packer on the hit comedy Girls Trip.
Last month, ABC announced that the 2022 Oscars ceremony will have a host. It's the first time the show will have a host since Jimmy Kimmel handled the 90th Academy Awards in March 2018. The host-less format appeared to work at first, especially when the 2019 ceremony moved at a much faster pace than past ceremonies. However, the idea began wearing thin, and viewership continued dropping. The 2021 ceremony had just 10.4 million viewers. Packer and the Academy must be hoping that a host will bring back audiences.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences also announced another obvious ploy to get viewers back on Monday. They launched the #OscarsFanFavorite and #OscarsMoment Twitter hashtags, encouraging movie fans to share their favorites to enter a chance to win a trip to next year's Oscars or free movies. The Academy even plans to recognize the most-picked favorite movie during the broadcast. It's similar to the ill-fated Most Popular Film category that was almost introduced in 2019 before cooler heads prevailed.
"We're thrilled to partner with Twitter to help build an engaged and excited digital audience leading up to this year's ceremony," Meryl Johnson, VP of digital marketing at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, told The Hollywood Reporter. "Through these activations, social media users around the world now have more opportunities to engage with the show in real-time, find a community, and be a part of the experience in ways they've never been able to before."
The 2022 Oscars will air on ABC on Sunday, March 27, with Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes as hosts.