Jimmy Kimmel Paid $15,000 to Host the 2017 Oscars

"I think it's illegal to pay nothing," he jokes on KROQ's Kevin & Bean morning show

By Zach Johnson Dec 15, 2016 2:55 PMTags

Jimmy Kimmel certainly didn't agree to host the 2017 Oscars for the money.

When Kimmel appeared on KROQ's Kevin & Bean morning show Wednesday, he revealed that he's only being paid $15,000 to host the 89th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre on Feb. 26. While the sum is significantly smaller than the scale of the event, Kimmel said producers had to pay him something. "You know why? I think it's illegal to pay nothing," he joked. "I'm not sure I was supposed to reveal this, but nobody told me not to. I consider this their fault."

This will be Kimmel's first time hosting the Oscars. Asked whether his pay is on par with previous hosts Billy Crystal and Chris Rock, for example, he said, "That's what they told me."

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Stars' First Oscars
ABC/Randy Holmes

Kimmel's involvement in the annual awards ceremony was announced Dec. 5, about two months later than Oscar hosts are typically revealed. "They asked like 14 people and they all said no and then there was me," he joked about the late invitation. "I absolutely was surprised."

Whether Jimmy Kimmel Live! will still produce its Academy Awards after-show remains to be seen, but Kimmel is staying optimistic."We'll figure something out," he told the radio co-hosts.

Of course, that comes secondary to the main event. "The producers and the Academy went through a long list of names, and in the end, they decided that—since I am already right across the street from where they do the show—I was the closest person to host," he joked last week.

Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd are producing the 2017 Oscars. "Mike and Jennifer have a great working relationship and a tremendous love and respect for film," Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Academy President, told E! News in a statement last month. "[They] will surely draw from their vast experience to create an exceptional and unforgettable event for movie fans everywhere."

Boone Isaacs can't wait to see what Kimmel does. "Jimmy has the qualities of all the great hosts," she told E! News last week. "He knows who he is, he knows the audience and he knows how to captain a ship with many moving parts. We're thrilled he has agreed to host our show."

The 89th Academy Awards will broadcast live Feb. 26 on ABC.