2016 Oscars Will Officially Have Two Hosts; Top Names Rumored To Be In The Running

Most people think that Neil Patrick Harris did a pretty fantastic job hosting the 2015 Oscars. However, odds are good he won’t be returning, so the question becomes, who can fill his shoes?

As it turns out, the show might be looking to replace Harris with not one, but two people when the time comes for the 2016 red carpet to be rolled out. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, producer David Hill, who will put on the show alongside former BET entertainment president Reginald Hudlin, revealed that the awards ceremony will be a bit different next year thanks to the addition of an extra host.

“There will be multiple hosts for sure - there will be two,” he said. He went on to joke about the reason for the change saying: “Two is better than one. Just imagine, you’re in there. One of your hosts drops dead from cardiac arrest. What do you do? Second host goes on!”

Hill stopped just short of revealing who they have in mind as the duo to take the stage together, but it will need to be someone very grand to replace the previous host. Soon after the 2015 show, Harris revealed to the Huffington Post that he isn’t interested in repeating the cycle for years to come.

“I don’t know that my family nor my soul could take it,” he told the outlet. “It’s a beast. It was fun to check off the list, but for the amount of time spent and the understandable opinionated response, I don’t know that it’s a delightful balance to do every year or even again.”

With producers on the hunt for a pair to fill his shoes, similar to the way Anne Hathaway and James Franco hosted in tandem in 2011, speculation is running wild about who might be tapped for the awards.

According to EW notes, the only real reason to decide on a pair of hosts, but not have names to present, is if they went into the idea with people in mind. TV Line cites comedy duos such as Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who met great success hosting the Golden Globes together, as potential hosts. Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele are another option after their star rose to great heights thanks to their Comedy Central series “Key and Peele,” which will end this season, freeing up their schedules. Other names churning in the rumor mill include Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, the recently split Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog and “A Deadly Adoption” stars Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell.

What pairing would you like to see host the 2016 Academy Awards? Comment below or tweet your thoughts to @TylerMcCarthy.