Eddie Murphy to host Oscars

Now this could be interesting. The Academy is making its annual effort to jump-start the awards telecast, first bringing on producer Brett Ratner to oversee the show and now asking the entertaining (if temperamental) Murphy to emcee. Nikki Finke has the story at deadline.com:

A decision like this to host the Academy Awards is made by committee with a star and his/her reps and pals weighing all the pro and con options. Which is why the Academy has such a tough time finding new hosts every year because it can be such a career-altering decision. Meanwhile, I hear that veteran Billy Crystal, who recently expressed interest in hosting again, will almost certainly be incorporated into the show in some marquee way.

There's no sure thing when it comes to an Oscar show, but after last year's disastrous pairing of non-comics James Franco and Anne Hathaway, the bar is especially low. Oh, and by the way, Murphy is starring in a Rattner-directed feature that opens in early November. Very little in Hollywood is by happenstance.