The history of Oscar hosts is nearly as long and varied as that of the awards themselves.
Including co-hosts, more than 60 different people — and one cartoon character — have hosted the annual ceremony, and 25 of them have done it more than once. The show has consistently tinkered with the format and expectations of a host, with multiple events featuring co-hosts, large groups of hosts, or no host at all.
In the early years of the Oscars, before TV broadcasts changed the game, hosting duties often fell to the Academy President — which led to Frank Capra winning Best Picture and Best Director for You Can't Take It With You while he was hosting the 1939 ceremony. Comedian Bob Hope took his first crack at hosting in 1940 and set the standard for how a popular entertainer would emcee the show. Hope wound up hosting or co-hosting the ceremony a whopping 19 times between 1940 and 1978, and everyone from Johnny Carson to Jimmy Kimmel, from Whoopi Goldberg to Amy Schumer, has followed his lead since.
Kimmel once again hosted the 95th Oscars, his third time doing so, with Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang saying, "Jimmy is the perfect host to help us recognize the incredible artists and films of our 95th Oscars. His love of movies, live TV expertise, and ability to connect with our global audiences will create an unforgettable experience for our millions of viewers worldwide." Kimmel will return to host the 96th Oscars on Sunday, March 10.
If you want to brush up on your Oscar history before then, check out the full list of hosts below. And if you think you see an error or two at the bottom of the list, think again: There really were two Oscar ceremonies in 1930 (the 2nd Oscars were in April of that year and the 3rd Oscars were in November), and there was no Oscars in 1933 (the 5th Oscars were in November 1932, and the 6th Oscars were in March 1934).
People who have hosted or co-hosted more than twice:
Bob Hope: 19 times (14 solo, 5 with others)
Billy Crystal: 9 times (solo)
Johnny Carson: 5 times (solo)
Whoopi Goldberg: 4 times (solo)
Jack Lemmon: 4 times (2 solo, 2 with others)
Jimmy Kimmel: 3 times (solo)
Steve Martin: 3 times (2 solo, 1 with others)
Jerry Lewis: 3 times (2 solo, 1 with others)
David Niven: 3 times (all with others)
Complete history of Oscar hosts:
2023 - 95th Oscars: Jimmy Kimmel
2022 - 94th Oscars: Regina Hall, Amy Schumer, and Wanda Sykes
2021 - 93rd Oscars: No Host
2020 - 92nd Oscars: No Host
2019 - 91st Oscars: No Host
2018 - 90th Oscars: Jimmy Kimmel
2017 - 89th Oscars: Jimmy Kimmel
2016 - 88th Oscars: Chris Rock
2015 - 87th Oscars: Neil Patrick Harris
2014 - 86th Oscars: Ellen DeGeneres
2013 - 85th Oscars: Seth MacFarlane
2012 - 84th Oscars: Billy Crystal
2011 - 83rd Oscars: James Franco and Anne Hathaway
2010 - 82nd Oscars: Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin
2009 - 81st Oscars: Hugh Jackman
2008 - 80th Oscars: Jon Stewart
2007 - 79th Oscars: Ellen DeGeneres
2006 - 78th Oscars: Jon Stewart
2005 - 77th Oscars: Chris Rock
2004 - 76th Oscars: Billy Crystal
2003 - 75th Oscars: Steve Martin
2002 - 74th Oscars: Whoopi Goldberg
2001 - 73rd Oscars: Steve Martin
2000 - 72nd Oscars: Billy Crystal
1999 - 71st Oscars: Whoopi Goldberg
1998 - 70th Oscars: Billy Crystal
1997 - 69th Oscars: Billy Crystal
1996 - 68th Oscars: Whoopi Goldberg
1995 - 67th Oscars: David Letterman
1994 - 66th Oscars: Whoopi Goldberg
1993 - 65th Oscars: Billy Crystal
1992 - 64th Oscars: Billy Crystal
1991 - 63rd Oscars: Billy Crystal
1990 - 62nd Oscars: Billy Crystal
1989 - 61st Oscars: No Host
1988 - 60th Oscars: Chevy Chase
1987 - 59th Oscars: Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn, and Paul Hogan
1986 - 58th Oscars: Alan Alda, Jane Fonda, and Robin Williams
1985 - 57th Oscars: Jack Lemmon, Co-hosts: Candice Bergen, Jeff Bridges, Glenn Close, Michael Douglas, Gregory Hines, William Hurt, Amy Irving, Diana Ross, Tom Selleck, and Kathleen Turner
1984 - 56th Oscars: Johnny Carson
1983 - 55th Oscars: Walter Matthau, Liza Minnelli, Dudley Moore, and Richard Pryor
1982 - 54th Oscars: Johnny Carson
1981 - 53rd Oscars: Johnny Carson
1980 - 52nd Oscars: Johnny Carson
1979 - 51st Oscars: Johnny Carson
1978 - 50th Oscars: Bob Hope
1977 - 49th Oscars: Warren Beatty, Ellen Burstyn, Jane Fonda, and Richard Pryor
1976 - 48th Oscars: Goldie Hawn, Gene Kelly, Walter Matthau, George Segal, and Robert Shaw
1975 - 47th Oscars: Sammy Davis Jr., Bob Hope, Shirley MacLaine, and Frank Sinatra
1974 - 46th Oscars: John Huston, David Niven, Burt Reynolds, and Diana Ross
1973 - 45th Oscars: Carol Burnett, Michael Caine, Charlton Heston, and Rock Hudson
1972 - 44th Oscars: Sammy Davis Jr., Helen Hayes, Alan King, and Jack Lemmon
1971 - 43rd Oscars: No Host
1970 - 42nd Oscars: No Host
1969 - 41st Oscars: No Host
1968 - 40th Oscars: Bob Hope
1967 - 39th Oscars: Bob Hope
1966 - 38th Oscars: Bob Hope
1965 - 37th Oscars: Bob Hope
1964 - 36th Oscars: Jack Lemmon
1963 - 35th Oscars: Frank Sinatra
1962 - 34th Oscars: Bob Hope
1961 - 33rd Oscars: Bob Hope
1960 - 32nd Oscars: Bob Hope
1959 - 31st Oscars: Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, David Niven, Laurence Olivier, Tony Randall, and Mort Sahl
1958 - 30th Oscars: Bob Hope, Jack Lemmon, David Niven, Rosalind Russell, James Stewart, and Donald Duck (on film)
1957 - 29th Oscars: Jerry Lewis (with Celeste Holm in New York)
1956 - 28th Oscars: Jerry Lewis (with Claudette Colbert and Joseph L. Mankiewicz in New York)
1955 - 27th Oscars: Bob Hope (with Thelma Ritter in New York)
1954 - 26th Oscars: Donald O'Connor (with Fredric March in New York)
1953 - 25th Oscars: Bob Hope (with Conrad Nagel in New York)
1952 - 24th Oscars: Danny Kaye
1951 - 23rd Oscars: Fred Astaire
1950 - 22nd Oscars: Paul Douglas
1949 - 21st Oscars: Robert Montgomery
1948 - 20th Oscars: No Host
1947 - 19th Oscars: Jack Benny (last half only for radio broadcast)
1946 - 18th Oscars: Bob Hope and James Stewart
1945 - 17th Oscars: John Cromwell and Bob Hope
1944 - 16th Oscars: Jack Benny (last half only for radio broadcast)
1943 - 15th Oscars: Bob Hope (last half only for radio broadcast)
1942 - 14th Oscars: Bob Hope (last half only for radio broadcast)
1941 - 13th Oscars: Bob Hope (last half only for radio broadcast)
1940 - 12th Oscars: Bob Hope (last half only for radio broadcast)
1939 - 11th Oscars: Frank Capra, Academy President
1938 - 10th Oscars: Bob Burns
1937 - 9th Oscars: George Jessel
1936 - 8th Oscars: Frank Capra, Academy President
1935 - 7th Oscars: Irvin S. Cobb
1934 - 6th Oscars: Will Rogers
1932 - 5th Oscars: Conrad Nagel, Academy President
1931 - 4th Oscars: Lawrence Grant, Academy Governor - Actors Branch)
1930 - 3rd Oscars: Conrad Nagel
1930 - 2nd Oscars: William C. deMille, Academy President
1929 - 1st Oscars: Douglas Fairbanks, Academy President, and William C. de Mille, Academy Vice President
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