American television host Jimmy Kimmel will return as host of the Oscars for a third time when he fronts Hollywood’s biggest event on Sunday.
In a statement last November, Kimmel said: “Being invited to host the Oscars for a third time is either a great honour or a trap.
“Either way, I am grateful to the Academy for asking me so quickly after everyone good said no.”
Oscars executive producers and showrunners Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner said they were “super thrilled to have Jimmy score his hat-trick on this global stage”.
“We know he will be funny and ready for anything!” they stated.
This year’s star-studded event will take place on Sunday (12 March). The Academy tweeted: “Welcome back!” to the talk show host as it shared the news of Kimmel’s return.
Last year, Kimmel found himself in hot water when he was accused of taking the spotlight from Quinta Brunson during the Emmys ceremony in September.
He was awarding the Abbott Elementary creator with the prize for outstanding writing for a comedy series but as part of a joke which began just ahead of the presentation, he stayed lying on the floor pretending to be drunk while Brunson made her speech.
He later apologised to Brunson on his Jimmy Kimmel Live! show for “stealing your moment”, although Brunson had taken it in good spirits.
