Jimmy Kimmel, the American TV host and comedian who will host the 96th Oscar ceremony next month, has stated that he did not anticipate returning to the stage.
The Hollywood Reporter reported that Kimmel told the Los Angeles Times, “I did not think I would ever do it again.”
He first presented the Academy Awards in 2017, when La La Land was mistakenly revealed as the best picture instead of ‘Moonlight’. He returned in 2018, and again last year.
“I did two of them, and they went well — something crazy happened at one of them with a story I’ll have for the rest of my life,” he said of the 2017 and 2018 gigs.
“I know how much work goes into [the Oscars], so I thought, ‘Yeah, I don’t necessarily want to do this ever again.'”
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Kimmel claimed that one of the most difficult aspects of presenting the Oscars is discussing films that his audience has not seen.
In 2017, he said, “I made a joke about Moonlight that made it clear to me that the vast majority of the room had not seen the movie, even though it won Best Picture.”
Last year, Kimmel stated that ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ changed his mind.
“I knew there was a movie that people had seen, and it just makes the job easier.”
Though he had expected that would be the end of it, Barbie left him with the same feelings regarding the 2024 event.
“I am sitting in a movie theatre watching Barbie and thinking, ‘Well, maybe I’ll do this again because at least I have a point of reference with everyone,'” he said.
“I always dreamed of hosting the Oscars exactly four times,” Kimmel joked when he was named host in November. He is now the fourth most frequent Academy Awards host in history, after Bob Hope (19), Billy Crystal (9), and Johnny Carson (5).
Molly McNearney, Kimmel’s wife and co-head writer for Jimmy Kimmel Live!, is also an executive producer of the show.
The 96th Academy Awards will be televised live on ABC on March 10 from the Dolby Theatre.