Why Anna Kendrick is the perfect Oscars host

She’s funny, she knows her way around a musical number and, most importantly, her Twitter feed is too irreverent to be offensive.

The Oscars are in need of a new host, and the solution should be obvious.

Some quick backstory: On Tuesday, news first broke that Kevin Hart would be hosting the 2019 Academy Awards. Barely 48 hours later, he stepped down from that prestigious gig after failing to apologize (and unwisely doubling down on) homophobic remarks he had made in the past.

The sad part was that choosing Hart to host Hollywood’s glitziest night wasn’t a bad move on the Academy’s part. He’s an objectively popular comedian with the potential to increase ratings and he brings a dose of diversity to a notoriously very white affair. So, who in that same vein should the Academy tap to fill Hart’s shoes?

The only requirements of an Oscars host are an ability to crack a few jokes, move the ceremony along at a brisk pace and be charming enough to sell even the most uninspired bits. A musical theater background doesn’t hurt either. To that end, the Oscars need to get Anna Kendrick to be its new host. It’s aca-inevitable.

First and foremost, the new host should definitely be a woman or person of color. The last thing the Oscars needs right now is yet another white late-night host (sorry, Jimmy Kimmel) to remind everyone just how homogeneous Hollywood can be. Hart was clearly the wrong choice, but the Academy’s heart was in the right place with that selection.

Relatedly, a woman hasn’t hosted the Oscars since Ellen DeGeneres got the gig in 2013. Even more disturbingly, she and Whoopi Goldberg are the only women to ever host the Oscars solo (other women have co-hosted with men). Getting Kendrick to replace Hart would add another name to that way-too-short list.

Kendrick’s qualifications for hosting are beyond reproach. She’s a movie star with a huge fan base, a veteran of big-screen comedies and has proven herself to be one of the most entertaining talk-show guests around. Just check out this “Between the Scenes” segment she did with Trevor Noah on The Daily Show that vaguely broke the Internet for a day in September.

Point being, she’s funny, and could easily carry an Oscars opening monologue and a few sketches. In fact, she’s been a part of an Academy stunt before: She made a surprise appearance as her Into the Woods character Cinderella during Neil Patrick Harris’ opening musical number during the 2014 Oscars. Enjoy her throwing a glass slipper at Jack Black.

The best Oscars hosts can sing and dance their ways through a musical moment. Incidentally, this is why the best Oscars host of the last decade-plus was Hugh Jackman in 2009. Nothing from subsequent ceremonies has topped his opening number, which also happens to feature the moment we all learned that Anne Hathaway could sing.

Kendrick could do that in her sleep. She’s a Broadway veteran, having been nominated for a Tony in 1998 at the age of 12, and has starred in countless movie musicals where she has proven her ability to master even the most difficult Stephen Sondheim and Jason Robert Brown songs. She could crush a few musical bits about Vice and The Favourite.

It’s sad that this last point has to be brought up, but it’s crucial: As far as we know, Kendrick is scandal-free. The worst thing she appears to have ever done was get Twilight fans riled up by remembering she was in those movies. The chances of any damning history being unearthed are minimal.

Even her Twitter account is probably safe, as she’s earned a reputation as a celebrity with a legitimately entertaining and inoffensive social media presence. Here are some Kendrick gems to give you a taste of her Twitter sensibilities:

It’s also worth mentioning that the Oscars are already at a PR disadvantage when it comes to hosting this year, as the Golden Globes made the fascinating choice to get Killing Eve and Brooklyn Nine-Nine stars Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg to host its ceremony. That’s an admirable and interesting move, one which the Academy must compete with. Enter Anna Kendrick.

So again, Kendrick is hilarious, is a talented singer/dancer and has a squeaky-clean persona. Plus, giving her the gig will also make the Academy at least look like it cares about championing diversity in some form.

She’s the perfect Oscars host. Academy: Do us all a simple favor and get her to MC your big night.

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