I was open about liking Neil Patrick Harris as Oscars host and thought from all the bitching that I was in the minority. Not so, according to a new poll whose methodology I cannot vouch for in any meaningful way:
A total of 71 percent of viewers voted that they would like to see Harris return as host in the future, and a minority pool of 29 percent — consisting mainly of younger males under the age of 25 — said they wouldn’t want the former Tony Awards and Emmys host to come back to the Oscars stage.
Among the Oscar hosts of the past five years — Harris, Ellen DeGeneres, Seth MacFarlane, Billy Crystal and James Franco and Anne Hathaway — 30 percent of viewers, largely female, still voted DeGeneres as their favorite, while Harris followed close behind at 20 percent. [THR]
I don’t know if “second favorite Oscars host of the last five years” would be something he’d want to put on a resume, but the 71% number seems promising. The reason it’s so mixed is that you have to account for the fact that Oscars host is a thankless job that virtually no one looks good doing. That said, my vote for next year’s Oscars host is The Rock.