Will multiple presenters at this year’s Oscars be entertaining?

The Oscars are forging ahead with a hostless ceremony, opting to go with multiple presenters instead. Is this the best move for the awards show?

The question of will host the Oscars this year has been a source of controversy and rather a long saga. Many people are probably aware of the Kevin Hart drama, but we will break it down for you briefly here so you have a timeline of events.

Kevin Hart was originally slated to do the job. However, on December 6, the comedian said he was stepping away from the gig just six hours after announcing he had accepted. This was due the resurfacing of past homophobic comments and tweets by Hart. Initially, Hart refused to apologize for his past comments, and even when he did eventually apologize, it felt like a non-apology.

Then, Hart appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in January where he appeared to be interested in accepting the role again. Ultimately though, Hart opted not to.

This predicament has left this year’s Academy Awards without a host and the Academy itself scrambling to figure out what to do. Because, as they say, the show must go on. Many past hosts, including Ellen DeGeneres, said they wouldn’t take the job if it was offered to them. (Personally, we thought the best move would be to have a prominent LGBTQ actor or actress take on the role.)

The solution to the host problem has finally been found, however, as the 91st Academy Awards will have multiple presenters instead. There were even rumors circulating that Marvel celebrities would be included in hosting, and those rumors actually turned out to be true.

In a sequence of tweets, The Academy posted a list of the presents for the awards show. That list includes Chris Evans, Tessa Thompson, and Brie Larson from the MCU as well as many other celebrities such as Constance Wu, Jennifer Lopez, and Tina Fey.

With this situation resolved, the biggest question we have is whether the multiple presenters’ solution is a good one or not. While having one host does help an award show feel more cohesive and offer continuity, it could also backfire. If the host isn’t doing a particularly good job or isn’t being funny or likable enough, it can turn people off to watching.

With multiple presenters involved, if someone makes a mistake or just isn’t doing well, it’s all right because they won’t be on stage the entire time. Having multiple presenters also allows for a bigger fan base as fans of different celebrities might tune in to see their favorite.

Including Marvel celebrities is an especially smart move by the Academy since there’s huge hype right now for Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel. There will be plenty of opportunities to share some Marvel jokes onstage, and it’d be awesome to see some of the Marvel actors present nominations for Black Panther.

One of the biggest benefits for having more presenters on stage versus a singular host is that we’ll see plenty of diversity. The roster for presenters this year includes multiple women and people of color whereas many of the hosts in the past have been well, white men.

While having multiple presenters might be a little different than normal, sometimes it’s good to change things up. The Academy is known for being a little slow to change, and while their hand was forced to make a change this time, it might be for the better.