25 best and memorable award show hosts of all time

25 best award show hosts

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 13: In this handout photo provided by NBCUniversal, L to R Tina Fey and Amy Poehler host the 70th Annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel International Ballroom on January 13, 2013 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Paul Drinkwater/NBCUniversal via Getty Images) /

3 of 26

HOLLYWOOD, CA – FEBRUARY 28: Host Chris Rock speaks onstage during the 88th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre on February 28, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images) /

24. Chris Rock

Show: 77th Annual Academy Awards (2005); 88th Annual Academy Awards (2016)

Memorable Moments: Chris Rock has take the stage as the host of the Academy Awards twice, and both times he walked away with mixed reviews. But we’ll get to those in a minute. When he first put on his hosting hat in 2005, he launched into a harsh criticism of Jude Law in his monologue and later showed off his comedy chops in a pre-taped piece. In 2016, Rock hosted in a pivotal year for the Oscars, amid the #OscarsSoWhite backlash, which featured a head-scratching and pretty problematic cameo from Stacey Dash.

Public Reception: Back in 2005, Rock’s role as host wasn’t as positively received as he might have hoped. His monologue fit the usual “let’s roast movie stars because they’re easy targets” bill, but that brand of comedy walks a tightrope between funny and cringey. Rock’s 2016 hosting gig gained even more mixed reception, as an NBC News article titled “The Rise and Fall of Host Chris Rock” unpacks the irony of his humor taking a turn toward the very subject he’d skewered.

Why They’re One of the Best: Outside of the criticism surrounding Chris Rock’s two times hosting the Academy Awards, his voice will always be one that’s important, loud, and heard. He was especially heard this year when he said comedians could no longer make offensive jokes and turned down hosting the hostless 2019 Oscars. Somewhere in the world, Jude Law releases a sigh of relief. As others have pointed out, Chris Rock’s comedy might have been more at home on a lower-brow stage, such as when he hosted the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards.

Home/Entertainment