Variety's Matt Donnelly is reporting that the Academy heads have given up on trying to find an Oscar host. Their attempt to get back Kevin Hart was a final hail-mary, which failed, plus there's the problem that every candidate they seem to be reaching out to are, wisely, declining, their invite to emcee the 91st annual edition of the event. And so the 2019 Oscars will be hostless, at least that's what Donnelly is saying.
“The Oscars are poised to embark on one of the most radical reinventions in the awards show’s long history,” Donnelly has reported. “For the first time in nearly three decades, the biggest night in movies plans to go without a host, individuals with knowledge of the plans told Variety.
“Producers will select a crop of A-listers to introduce various segments instead of relying on one marquee name to kick things off in a monologue filled with Trump zingers, said the insiders. The producers and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group behind the Oscars, are scrambling to line up top talent needed to carry the telecast, which is just six weeks from airing live — on Feb. 24 — from Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre."
“Hand-wringing at the Academy has been palpable,” Donnelly writes.
“As it stands, no new offers are out, nor are any expected to be made to a single potential host to fill the void left by Kevin Hart, who dropped out within hours of being selected when he refused to apologize for his past homophobic remarks that had resurfaced on Twitter.”