A.M.P.A.S./ABC When in doubt, go with what works. And we don't mean Ricky Gervais.
Billy Crystal will return as host of the Oscars next year, the funnyman first revealed today via Twitter.
The Emmy- and Tony Award-winner's name instantly rocketed to the top of the wish list after Eddie Murphy bowed out on the heels of producer Brett Ratner just yesterday.
"Am doing the Oscars so the young woman in the pharmacy will stop asking my name when I pick up my prescriptions," Crystal tweeted. "Looking forward to the show."
And so are we!
Crystal, who has hosted the Academy Awards eight times and won five Emmys for his fearless leadership, provided one of last year's few highlights when he showed up to remind us of how it used to be present during last year's telecast—so unremarkably cohosted by Anne Hathaway and James Franco.
"He's a comic legend and Oscar icon, and it feels good to have him back where he belongs," Tom Sherak, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said of Crystal.
"With Billy, we're moving forward with one of the greatest hosts in Oscar history," added producer Don Mischer. "His return to the Oscars is, in a sense, a celebration."
Oscar-winner Brian Grazer will executive-produce the 84th Academy Awards, which will air live Feb. 26, 2012, from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre. And now he's got a beautiful comedic mind to go with it.