Comedian Chris Rock is reportedly in talks with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences to host the 88th Academy Awards in April. This would be his first time hosting the Oscars in over a decade.
Variety claims that Rock is in “serious talks” to host the ceremony, although the Academy did not comment on the story. The comedy site Robot Butt reported that Rock would host the ceremony on Monday.
The news comes just a few weeks after David Hill and Reginald Hudlin were named the new producers for the Oscars. It will be the first ceremony in three years not produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.
While Hill said in an interview last month that he might be interested in using two hosts, bringing Rock back sounds like a much better idea. He previously hosted in 2005 and Hudlin directed the pilot for Rock’s Everybody Hates Chris series. Television ratings also tumbled last year by 16 percent with Neil Patrick Harris.
The next Oscars ceremony will take place on Feb. 28 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and will air on ABC.