2005 Academy Awards host Chris Rock is returning to the job more than a decade later.
The producers of next year’s movie awards ceremony announced Wednesday that Rock will host the 88th annual ceremony on Feb. 28.
“Chris Rock is truly the MVP of the entertainment industry,” Oscars producers David Hill and Reginald Hudlin said in a joint statement. “Comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, documentarian – he’s done it all. He’s going to be a phenomenal Oscar host!”
Though most visible as a star on television — where he was a regular on “Saturday Night Live,” created and narrated the sitcom “Everybody Hates Chris” and starred in several Emmy-winning stand-up specials — Rock also keeps a foot in the movie world. He directed and starred in the semi-autobiographical “Top Five” last year, and his earlier credits include “I Think I Love My Wife,” “Head of State” and the animated “Madagascar” franchise.
His 2005 stint on the Oscars stage is best remembered for his riff on second-rate actors who can’t fill the shoes of real movie stars: settling for Colin Farrell when you can’t get Russell Crowe, or Jude Law when you can’t get Tom Cruise.
“Who is Jude Law? Why is he in every movie I’ve seen in the last four years?” Rock joked.
Presenter Sean Penn had a dour response later in the show, answering Rock’s question by saying, “Jude Law is one of our most talented actors.”
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