Deadline is reporting Oscar producer Brett Ratner is ready to offer the Academy his choice for Oscar host this Tuesday, and the name he is expected to suggest is none other than his Tower Heist star, Eddie Murphy. Apparently he is Ratner’s only choice and Murphy is “showing interest.”
Finke, however, says Murphy is hardly a done deal and that “a lot of big names have approached the other 84th Academy Awards producer Don Mischer saying they are interested in hosting, and Don is fielding those calls.”
The Murphy plot thickens, however, when Finke links to entertainment website Humor Mill who are sourcing Murphy’s close friends saying it’s a done deal, despite Finke’s insistence he’s not.
Of course the name that’s been floating around for some time is Billy Crystal. Crystal has hosted the Oscars eight times, second only to Bob Hope’s 18, and after a surprise appearance last year told The Hollywood Reporter he got “a little itchy.”
Whatever the result, I’m sure as soon as it is confirmed the Academy will make an announcement as they have been recently, most notably the midnight announcement of the Best Picture rules change. So, perhaps this Tuesday we’ll have an Oscar host for the 84th Academy Awards which will be held on February 26, 2012 at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood and Highland. Stay tuned.
