The host of the late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live, confirmed the news himself in a mid-day tweet. “Yes, I am hosting the Oscars. This is not a prank. And if it is, my revenge on @TheAcademy will be terrible and sweet,” he wrote.
Oscars producers Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd, revealed the announcement of hiring Jimmy Kimmel for the job of The Hollywood Reporter who broke the news.
“I grew up with a little Johnny Carson as host, a lot with Billy Crystal, I loved the Ellen (DeGeneres) year and Steve Martin,” De Luca told USA TODAY in early November, prior to Kimmel's hiring. “I like funny people who can riff and improve, throw out one-liners based on the evening's events. But I think if we had one word to describe how we want people to feel during the show, we want joy.”
Meanwhile, Jimmy Kimmel got some mileage of out his new gig as the Oscar host in the opening monologue of Monday’s edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live.
“A lot of things happened to me over the last two weeks. I got a tummy tuck. They still give those. I had my eyes done and I think they look great, right? I also went to Dry Bar, I got an up-do. I had my whole body done. I read online today that in February – I will be hosting the Oscars,” he said.
Kimmel also joked about the extremely late timing of the 89th Academy Awards host announcement. He poked fun at the fact that he was probably not the first choice of Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd.
Though, this will be his first time hosting the Oscars, Kimmel, 49, is no stranger to hosting duties, having earned strong notices for his work hosting the Emmys this year. He also hosted the TV-centric show in 2012, and past hosted the American Music Awards.
