Yesterday, Eddie Murphy officially announced that he would host next year’s Oscars, and we were thinking that this could be a great opportunity for the formerly-HIGHlarious actor to prove himself to the world once again!
Now, Oscar producer Brett Ratner has opened up about Eddie as the next host.
Here’s Brett on how it all came together with Eddie:
“I got the job a few weeks ago, and I just started thinking about who would be great to host. I was told that 20 people would say ‘no’ to me before I would get a ‘yes.’ I mentioned it to Eddie, and he said, ‘That├óΓé¼Γäós a great idea!’ So for those who think I was planning this, it was not something that was planned. It just happened that I├óΓé¼Γäóm making a movie [November’s Tower Heist] with him. We had a great time working together. We have a great relationship ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ he probably wouldn├óΓé¼Γäót have done [the Oscars] if we didn├óΓé¼Γäót have that relationship. From what I understand from Don, who does a lot of these live event shows, Eddie is constantly saying ‘no.’ He├óΓé¼Γäós very elusive, but I think he thought it was a great idea to do it together.”
More from Brett on Eddie’s eagerness to sign on as host:
“When it comes to hosting the Oscars, you cannot twist anybody├óΓé¼Γäós arm to do it. The first thing we as producers know is that if somebody steps out on that stage at the top of the show, they have to be completely comfortable. They have to want to be there. They got to be committed, and they got to feel good about it. And this is Eddie├óΓé¼Γäós world ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ performing not only in front of a live audience as he did on SNL, but in front of a crowd like he did with Raw and Delirious. No one├óΓé¼Γäós better at this than him.”
Brett on Eddie’s ability to be funny while keeping things PG-rated:
“I just did Tower Heist with him, and he was funny as hell and didn├óΓé¼Γäót say one bad word. Yes, he├óΓé¼Γäós a surprising talent, and he├óΓé¼Γäós going to surprise people and be irreverent. But he also knows how to not only entertain the crowd, but how to move people. He├óΓé¼Γäós a storyteller ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ that├óΓé¼Γäós what makes him so special as a comedian. It├óΓé¼Γäós a different type of comedy. If you watch his [stand-up] shows, regardless of the curse words, he told great stories.”
And here’s how Brett believes Eddie will bring “tremendous heart to the show”:
“The heart comes from having a host who really has such love for not only their job, but for what they├óΓé¼Γäóre there honoring. All [Eddie and I] talk about is movies. All we talk about is great moments in film. Eddie probably watches a few movies every single day. That makes it poignant when you have somebody who has such love and respect for something, instead of someone who├óΓé¼Γäós just going up to tell jokes. He was at my house for my birthday, and I had Al Pacino and Warren Beatty there, and he was so in awe of them. And I was like, ‘But you├óΓé¼Γäóre Eddie Murphy!’
All sounds very encouraging! We’re truly making the effort to be optimistic about this one! We would LOVE IT if Eddie killed it as the host!
As we said before…put that game face on, Eddie!
What do U think about Brett Ratner’s comments? Did they change your feelings on Eddie Murphy as Oscar host at all???
[Images via WENN.]