In the peak of awards season and reveling in the aftermath of the awkwardness of this year’s Golden Globes, award shows, and their hosts have been pertinent topics on social media.
It’s fair to say that hosting an award show is somewhat of a lose-lose situation.
If you do a good job, then you’re likely not making any headlines the following day. But if you’re in the headlines, it’s likely due to poor reviews.
In an age where comedians don’t necessarily need a big break from an award show gig.
They could blow up on social media and grow a fan base without having to take risks with a massive audience they’re not known by not understanding their humor.
This is exemplified in Jo Koy’s hosting job at the Golden Globes.
The stand-up wasn’t a big enough name to propel viewers to tune in. But in an awards season with huge contenders, this wasn’t necessary.
Koy noted he only found out he was hosting ten days before the show. While most awards shows don’t write anything until around the week of the show, at least they knew they were hosting further in advance.
This element of the Koy conundrum makes it apparent that Koy was nowhere near the top of the list for the Golden Globes’ pick of hosts. Which makes the disaster make more sense.
This isn’t a defense of Koy. Not only did he make sexist remarks about “Barbie” and throw his writers under the bus, but he clearly didn’t care about the movies and shows nominated.
His opening remarks made it clear he hadn’t done the necessary research and made it seem like watching these projects was a chore. In front of an audience of people who made these projects. And an audience at home who loved them.
That doesn’t seem like the best way to get an audience to want to laugh at your jokes.
Very few genuinely defended Koy, even those who have enjoyed his previous work weren’t fans of the performance.
The celebrity audiences at these shows have been known not to be the greatest crowd for a comedian to work with, but these jokes translated poorly to audiences at home.
And the bulk of Koy’s defense was based around that aspect. Hosting award shows is a hard gig.
The rhetoric around hosts of award shows has been hostile for years, and it started when the Oscars went hostless in 2019.
But even without an official host, the Academy Awards still tapped Amy Poehler, Tina Fey and Maya Rudolph to welcome the audience to the ceremony.
This worked exceptionally well. Poehler and Fey have proven by hosting the Golden Globes or even their work on “Weekend Update” that they are beloved and hilarious. And it’s hard to find a funnier and more charming celebrity than Rudolph.
This year, the Oscars will have Jimmy Kimmel host their awards again. The late-night host did a fine job last year, but it was nothing to write home about.
With the issues surrounding Koy’s hosting and Kimmel not being the most compelling hosts, the argument that award shows have evolved past the need for a host seems fair.
But the problem isn’t having a host, it’s who is selected to do so.
What award shows need more than just a qualified comedian is a likable personality. This may seem complicated in an era where celebrities are constantly being “canceled,” but it’s really not.
Andy Samberg hosted the 2019 Golden Globes alongside Sandra Oh. Samberg, a seasoned comedian paired with Oh, a beloved celebrity provided an entertaining and scandalless monologue.
The odd pairing itself was compelling enough to interest viewers to tune in. Along with how likable the two are, they killed it.
John Mulaney has returned from his moment of public scrutiny and is once again one of the most cherished stand-up comedians currently working.
He hosted the Oscar’s Governor Awards only a few days after the Golden Globes, and as expected, things went phenomenally. Mulaney and frequent collaborator Nick Kroll hosted the 2017 and 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, for hilarious performances.
Mulaney and Kroll may not have the name recognition Kimmel, Samberg or Oh have among older generations. But the comedy duo is popular within the millennial through Gen Z range, a demographic these shows are struggling to capture.
There’s a plethora of celebrity personas capable of taking on a job like this. Amber Ruffin, Bowen Yang, Taylor Tomlinson, Marcello Hernandez, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Keegan Michael Key and Jordan Peele are just some of the names that can exemplify the range and diversity that would be a surefire bet for a good host at most awards.
Hosts of award shows may not get acclaim the next day, but when they do a good job, it becomes an unforgettable moment in pop culture. Just like Fey and Poehlers work at the Golden Globes.
Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Fallon’s Emmy’s opening sketches from 2006 and 2010 perfectly capture the shows that made headlines and were nominated for the evening.
Who could forget Neil Patrick Harris’s Emmy-winning Tony opening number “Bigger” at the 2013 ceremony?
Even though Ricky Gervais was known for his harshness, his jokes were almost always punching up, witty or coming from a place of sincerity and genuineness.
The now-iconic Ariana DeBose BAFTA’s opening musical number had energy and admiration that wasn’t just evident but necessary to keep the energy of a show like that high and captivating.
This isn’t to say Kimmel isn’t a fan, but he’s a boring choice. He was a boring choice last year, and now we’re having that same choice again. With ratings dropping for award shows across the board, the answer isn’t getting rid of hosts.
It’s finding the right ones.