Former Tony Award winner/talking cat Kevin Spacey has been tapped to host this year’s iteration of the annual theatrical awards. Spacey—who won back in 1991, for his work in Neil Simon’s Lost In Yonkers—was picked after a long search for this year’s host, presumably because nobody wants to be the Broadway version of circa-2017 Warren Beatty right now.
“I was their second choice for Usual Suspects, fourth choice for American Beauty, and 15th choice to host this year’s Tony Awards,” Spacey joked in a blessedly accent-free statement, adding that he hopes his career is now going in “the right direction.” This will be Spacey’s first time hosting the Tonys, which have been handled in recent years by rampaging charisma monsters like Neil Patrick Harris and Hugh Jackman. Given his love of singing—showcased in his 2004 Bobby Darrin passion project, Beyond The Sea—Spacey should fit right in, as long as, again, he doesn’t do the Frank Underwood voice. (Please.)