2013 Oscars Ratings: Seth MacFarlane Bumps Up Numbers From 2012—How Does He Rank Against Previous Hosts?

Family Guy funnyman brought in over 40 million viewers

By Jenna Mullins Feb 25, 2013 10:20 PMTags
2013 Oscars Show, Seth MacFarlaneKevin Winter/Getty Images

Last night, Seth MacFarlane joked that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler would be asked to be Oscar hosts next year, but based on the ratings, the Academy might want the Family Guy boss back again!

The 2013 Oscars brought in 40.3 million viewers, up from the 2012 Oscars' (hosted by Billy Crystal) 39.3 million.

The broadcast hasn't broke 40 million viewers since 2010, when Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin pulled double hosting duty. 

So how did MacFarlane and his Jewish jokes fare in comparison to notable previous Oscar hosts? Let's take a look:

  1. Billy Crystal (1998): 57.3 million
  2. David Letterman (1995): 48.9 million
  3. Billy Crystal (2000): 46.5 million
  4. Whoopi Goldberg (1994): 46.3 million
  5. Billy Crystal (1993): 45.9 million 
  6. Whoopi Goldberg (1999): 45.6 million
  7. Billy Crystal (1992): 44.4 million
  8. Billy Crystal (2004): 43.6 million
  9. No host (1970): 43.4 million
  10. Donald O'Connor and Fredric March (1954): 43 million
  11. Steve Martin (2001): 42.9 million
  12. Billy Crystal (1991): 42.8 million
  13. No host (1989): 42.8 million
  14. Chris Rock (2005): 42.2 million
  15. Chevy Chase (1988): 42 million
  16. Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin (2010): 41.6 million
  17. Billy Crystal (1997): 40.8 million
  18. Whoopi Goldberg (2002): 40.5 million
  19. Seth MacFarlane (2013): 40.3 million
  20. Billy Crystal (1990): 40.2 million
  21. Bob Hope and Conrad Nagel (1953): 40 million
  22. Ellen DeGeneres (2007): 39.9 million
  23. Billy Crystal (2012): 39.3 million
  24. James Franco and Anne Hathaway (2011): 37.6 million
  25. Hugh Jackman (2009): 36.9 million

He fell short of Billy Crystal's Titanic-sized ratings in 1998, but surpassed the likes of James Franco, Anne Hathaway, Ellen DeGeneres and Hugh Jackman.

What did you think of Seth MacFarlane as host last night?