Actor Billy Crystal announced his return and will be hosting the 84th annual Academy Awards. The selection of Crystal, who has hosted the Oscars eight times before, brings a feeling of stability and familiarity back to the broadcast after a season of controversy with the departure of producer Brett Ratner and his handpicked host Eddie Murphy.
“Am doing the Oscars so the young woman in the pharmacy will stop asking my name when I pick up my prescriptions. Looking forward to the show,” the actor tweeted last week.
The charismatic actor does not seem to have a problem being the academy’s second choice and has been quoted saying he’s itching to host the show again. Crystal hosted the most watched Academy Awards Ceremony in history during 1998 with an astounding 55.3 million viewers. The charismatic actor last hosted the Oscars in 2004, the year Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King brought home Oscar gold.
The swift replacement will allow the academy to keep the broadcast’s production on schedule as well as protect the stature of its signature event, one that takes in roughly $80 million each year.
Motion picture academy president Tom Sherak is excited about Crystal’s return. “He’s a comic legend and Oscar icon, and it feels good to have him back where he belongs,” Sherak said.