The Oscars reportedly have some ideas to make its hosting gig more appealing

Can the award show be saved? With generally declining ratings across the board and difficulty attracting top talent that attracts viewers, every award show has struggled to stay relevant in the modern era. The 2025 Academy Awards air on March 2, and the show still hasn’t locked down a host despite the fact that hosting signifies months of work. According to a report from Puck News, the Academy’s solution is to ask… what if hosting didn’t signify months of work?

This is different from an entirely hostless Oscars, but only slightly. (And if nobody actually agrees to do it, a hostless show is presumably still on the table.) This strategy would involve a “lighter lift” where the host isn’t committed to all the monologues, pre-taped bits, stunts, and musical numbers. Instead, the Academy could try to fill the show with monologues, pre-taped bits, stunts, and musical numbers from a variety of talent, and the host would just be a facilitator for the show. This could also include incorporating more debut trailers and upcoming cinema promo to transform the Oscars into something like “a Comic-Con-style extravaganza of promotion for movies,” in the words of Puck‘s Matthew Belloni. 

In a statement to the outlet, Academy C.E.O. Bill Kramer said he wants to “continue to evolve the Oscars to be nimble and dynamic.” He didn’t confirm any details about what a revamped show would look like, but said, “We want the Oscars to be the place where studios and filmmakers unveil the most exciting things about their work—beloved characters and stories, legacy moments, and upcoming releases. No other venue brings together a global community of film fans like the Oscars. Let’s celebrate our love of the movies and our industry together.”

Puck reports there’s been outreach to some of the year’s biggest stars, particularly within Disney (as the show is hosted on the Disney subsidiary ABC). Big names include Inside Out‘s Amy Poehler, Moana‘s Dwayne Johnson, and Deadpool & Wolverine‘s Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, as well as Will Ferrell (whose documentary Will & Harper may well be among the nominees) and Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande of Wicked. The thought process goes, if none of these people actually want to do the Hosting-Lite gig, they could still be involved in some portion of the show (a comedy bit, a musical number, etc.) that would make it easier for whoever does sign up for Hosting-Lite. It probably won’t fix the structural problems with awards shows in the streaming age, but at least it might make a celebrity more likely to sign up.