The Comedy Guide To Tonight’s Oscars

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One thing the Academy Awards always needs is some comic relief during the hours long ceremony. Just some moments to break up the speeches from the animated short film winners and meeting the accountants who are holding the envelopes containing the winners’ names. Plus, you can’t expect huge laughs from Liam Neeson and Lupita Nyong’o and some of the others who are presenting tonight.

Here are the announced presenters and performers that should bring the comedy tonight at the Oscars.

Eddie Murphy presenting an Oscar. This is the second weekend in a row that Eddie Murphy will appear on live television. Eddie was in rehearsals this week so there might be more to his Oscar appearance than there was during his brief moment on the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special. According to USA Today, Eddie jokingly asked if his entrance music could be his song “Party All The Time”.

Kevin Hart will be handing out a statuette this evening as well as Chris Pratt. Being the king of the Summer box office with “Guardians of the Galaxy” has earned Pratt a spot reading nominations. As did Kevin Hart’s $135 million comedy movie hit “Ride Along” from last year. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is also presenting. He could be teamed with Hart for a whole “Let’s put the really big guy with the smaller guy” gag.

Tonight’s Oscars include musical performances by comedians. The Lonely Island (Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone) will team up with the pop duo Tegan and Sara to perform “Everything Is Awesome” from “The Lego Movie” which is nominated for Best Original Song. There will also be a musical number by Jack Black which has nothing to do with any of the nominated songs. Black as well as Lady Gaga, Jennifer Hudson and Anna Kendrick are all singing tonight, maybe joining host Neil Patrick Harris.

Academy Awards host Neil Patrick Harris is planning something big. isn’t giving too much up about what to expect in his performance. The 4 time Tony Awards and 2 time Emmy Awards host is more than likely going to hit the audience with a big song and dance number. It’s what he’s known for and he admits he’s more Billy Crystal than he is Seth MacFarlane when it comes to hosting the Oscars. He told Ellen DeGeneres “I skew kinder. I want to keep it a classy show. It’s a night of celebration. All of these people worked so hard all year long, all career long to attend this night. To make jokes at them, that’s just not my style.” Although he told Jimmy Kimmel in the video below, that there will have to be some insults because that’s what the audience expects and to avoid becoming “too saccharine”.

Neil Patrick Harris did reveal that he wants to do something that will top Ellen DeGeneres’ Oscars Selfie from last year’s Academy Awards. He said he’s been obsessed by it and thinks he has something that will be bigger.

Jimmy Kimmel will be back after the Academy Awards. He will be hosting his 10th annual Jimmy Kimmel Live: After The Oscars special with guests including NPH, John Travolta, Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Eddie Redmayne, Lupita Nyong’o, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Gary Oldman, Jeff Bridges, Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell and more. His show will air immediately after the Oscars on ABC.

There are comedies and comedy performances nominated for Oscars tonight. The very serious award winning part of the night includes the dark comedy “Birdman” and Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel” each being nominated for 9 Academy Awards.

“Birdman” which won the Film Independent Spirit Award for Best Feature just 24 hours ago is up for Best Picture, Best Director for Alejando G. Inarritu, Best Actor for Michael Keaton, Best Supporting Actor for Edward Norton, Best Supporting Actress for Emma Stone, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing.

“The Grand Budapest Hotel” is up for many of the same categories as “Birdman” including Best Picture, Best Director for Wes Anderson, Best Original Screenplay also for Wes Anderson, Best Cinematography, but also Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Original Score and Best Hairstyling and Make Up.

The two comedies face competition in the Best Picture category from “American Sniper”, “Boyhood”, “The Imitation Game”, “Selma”, “The Theory of Everything” and “Whiplash”. While Anderson and Inarritu are up against Richard Linklater for “Boyhood”, Bennett Miller for “Foxcatcher” and Morton Tyldum for “The Imitation Game” for Best Director.

Steve Carell is nominated tonight for his dramatic turn as wealthy heir and wrestling coach turned murderer, John du Pont in “Foxcatcher”. His fellow Best Actor nominees include Keaton for “Birdman”, Bradley Cooper for “American Sniper”, Benedict Cumberbatch for “The Imitation Game” and Eddie Redmayne for “The Theory of Everything”.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s comedy, “Inherent Vice” is up for 2 Oscars tonight including Best Adapted Screenplay for PT Anderson and Best Costume Design.

The 87th Annual Academy Awards are tonight at 8:30pm et with red carpet coverage beginning at 7pm et on ABC.

 

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