Last month, social media erupted over the news that Emmy-winning standup John Mulaney and regular Oscar host Jimmy Kimmel both turned down the offer to emcee the 2025 Academy Awards. And as of press time, the 76th Primetime Emmys ceremony, which airs Sept. 15 on ABC, has still not announced a host. So why is nobody champing at the bit to take these seemingly prestigious gigs?
One obvious reason is that there are fewer eyes on awards ceremonies these days. Take the Oscars: When “Oppenheimer” took best picture earlier this year, it was the first mega-blockbuster to win the category since “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.” However, the 2004 ceremony netted 44 million viewers, compared with the this year’s ceremony, which topped out at 19.5 million. This sharp drop in interest is particularly worrisome in an age of declining box office grosses.
Emmys 2024: A Breakdown of This Year's Best Series Nominees There are other factors at work as well. For instance, back in the “Return of the King” days, social media was a decidedly minor presence, meaning hosts didn’t have to step in front of the online firing squad. (Just ask Oscar winner Ariana DeBose, who recently hosted her third Tonys to a chorus of social media boos over the ceremony’s opening number.)
Audiences may also be fatigued by the insider vibe that’s permeated many awards shows, since many hosts are just as embedded in the industry as the honorees. Ceremonies can come off as targeted toward an inside-baseball crowd, which alienates folks who are working two or three jobs and just want to see some fun outfits and showy musical numbers.
But do awards shows even need hosts? From 2019 to 2021, the Oscars didn’t have one, and there were few negative responses. However, the host-less 1989 Academy Awards is still considered to be one of the worst ceremonies in history—particularly since producer Allan Carr decided that Rob Lowe and Snow White (Eileen Bowman) performing a “Proud Mary” parody was exactly what America needed.
But a less tacky approach could actually work. There’s a vocal (and correct) chorus of industry craftspeople bemoaning the fact that most awards shows don’t give technicians their proper due. Maybe producers could use the time freed up by not having a host to get viewers excited about the CGI pros who make dragons come to life on HBO, or the animators who work tirelessly to hit impossible deadlines. And with the recent introduction of a new Oscar category for casting, the Academy could offer insights into what goes into acquiring talent for major film and TV efforts. We already know what actors, writers, and directors do; it’s high time the folks behind the scenes got their flowers.
Credit: TInseltown/Shutterstock
If awards bodies do want to continue bringing on hosts, they should consider ditching the comedian/late-night-personality model in favor of superstar emcees. There’s always a collective sigh when the latest well-meaning, funny white guy gets the gig; so how about shooting for the stars? Go for the likes of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, or Taylor Swift. (Just look at how hyped people got about even spotting the latter at Super Bowl LVIII.) All three of these women have an untouchable, crowd-pleasing aura and legions of fans who would follow them anywhere; and, as multihyphenates, they know how the industry works.
In a year when the American public is struggling under the weight of a crucial presidential election, don’t we deserve a little escapist fun? To paraphrase a T. Swift tune, those producers furiously trying to book top-tier talent for hosting gigs have a blank space to fill, baby; so write their names!
This story originally appeared in the Aug. 15 issue of Backstage Magazine.
