by Emily Krauser
Outrage over the lack of diversity among nominees at the Oscars will not keep Chris Rock from his hosting duties, the show’s producer told ET exclusively.
ET’s Nischelle Turner sat down with Academy Awards producer Reginald Hudlin at the 47th NAACP Image Awards Nominee Luncheon on Saturday, where he confirmed that Rock will not be dropping out of the show.
Hudlin also revealed that though the 50-year-old comedian finished writing his monologue a week ago, once the #OscarsSoWhite outrage came to a head with Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith’s pledge to boycott, Rock scrapped his jokes and started working on a new script.
“Chris is hard at work. He and his writing staff locked themselves in a room,” Hudlin told ET. “As things got a little provocative and exciting, he said, ‘I’m throwing out the show I wrote and writing a new show.'”
“Chris is that thorough,” Hudlin added. “He’s that brilliant, and I have 1000 percent confidence that he will deliver something that people will be talking about for weeks.”
According to Hudlin, Rock isn’t steering away from the issue of a white-washed group of nominees, but rather diving right into the fire.
“You should expect [#OscarsSoWhite jokes],” Hudlin told ET. “And, yes, the Academy is ready for him to do that. They’re excited about him doing that. They know that’s what we need. They know that’s what the public wants, and we deliver what the people want.”
The Academy Awards ceremony won’t take place until Feb. 28, but Rock has already addressed the controversy, tweeting an ad for the Oscars and writing, “The #Oscars. The White BET Awards.”
This will be Rock’s second time hosting the Oscars. His first emcee gig came in 2005.
Earlier this week, ET spoke to Viola Davis, who said the real problem wasn’t with the Oscars but rather the films that are being produced, as the majority do not predominately feature actors of color. The How to Get Away With Murder star said that though Tyrese had suggested Rock drop the gig, it was up to Rock to decide for himself.
“Like I said, the Oscars are not really the issue,” she said. “It’s a symptom of a much greater disease. But if he does [host], I hope he takes it as an opportunity to make a statement, a social statement about change. It’s 2016.”
The Pinkett-Smiths have been two of the loudest dissenters against this year’s predominately white nominations — the second year in a row that the discrepancy has occurred — but they’re far from the only actors to speak out. In addition to Davis and Tyrese, George Clooney, Whoopi Goldberg, Tessa Thompson, Lupita Nyong’o and Stacey Dash are among the many who’ve weighed in on both the nominations and possible boycotts.
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By Faryn Shiro and
Kelly Hagan, ABC News
This year’s Academy Awards may be an Oscars show like we’ve never seen before thanks to two men behind the scenes who have been nicknamed “the two dads.”
David Hill, a veteran producer of sports and concert events, and Reginald Hudlin, a writer, director and producer, are producing this year’s Oscars. The occasion marks both the first time the men have worked together and the first time they’ve produced Hollywood’s biggest awards show.
Hudlin told “Good Morning America” co-anchor Lara Spencer that the “two dads” nickname “evolved over the last couple of months” as the pair crafted the awards show. When they first met, Hudlin said the two knew right away what had to be done at this year’s Oscars.
“We agreed that Chris Rock should be the host, and we agreed to bring the orchestra back into the theater,” said Hudlin, who was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar as producer of “Django Unchained” in 2012.
“There’s an embarrassment of riches,” Hill added of Rock’s comedy gold mine. “Let’s put it that way.”
Rock is expected to address the #OscarsSoWhite controversy that erupted after the all-white slate of acting nominations was announced. Hudlin and Hill said the controversy has not impacted their plans for the broadcast.
“We wanted a show that looked like America, that looked like the world,” Hudlin said. “Most of our booking was done before the nominees were announced.”
Hill, who won an Emmy for producing the 2011 World Series broadcast and is a former executive producer of “American Idol,” said the pair also looked at social media, asking the question, “Who do people really, really follow?”
“We just wanted to get the biggest, best talent we could get,” Hudlin added. “And, of course, the most talented people in our business.”
An array of new faces is just the beginning of the changes made by Hill and Hudlin. The pair are also completely changing the order of the awards given out.
“I want people to watch and be surprised,” Hudlin said. “You’re going to be seeing things the way you’ve never seen them before.”
“We’re making the show, and the order of the show, for people who love films,” said Hill.
One already-announced change is that the names of family, friends and colleagues the winners want to thank in their speeches will be scrolled at the bottom of the screen as the winners are speaking. The idea is to give the winners more time.
“There’s gonna be a lot of experimentation,” Hudlin said. “Some of it may work and some of it doesn’t work, but it’s something new.”
Winners will receive an Oscar statue that is now completely hand-cast in bronze before getting its 24-karat finish and the Oscar stage will glitter in gold itself thanks to more than 200,000 Swarovski crystals.
“My biggest inspiration this year was 1970s glam and, of course, the theme of this year’s show, which is that everyone dreams in gold,” set designer Derek McLane told ABC News.
This year the show will open with an animated short set to a musical score created by famed composer Danny Elfman.
“It is kind of a fantasy factory of how Oscars are made,” Elfman said.
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With CAA agent Cameron Mitchell, Oscars producer Reggie Hudlin, Common’s manager Derek Dudley at the Governor’s Ball. Glad to support Reggie, a friend for over thirty years, as he worked to impact the most important cinema awards event in the world.
Dave Chappelle showed up to support Chris Rock. He was backstage the entire show.
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Variety, Tim Gray
David Hill & Reginald Hudlin
The day after the 88th Academy Awards, first-time Oscarcast producers David Hill and Reginald Hudlin said they were exhausted. However, they sounded upbeat about the creativity in the show, the reaction of execs at ABC and the Academy, and at the expanded demographics of the viewers despite a drop in total viewers. The two producers talked with Variety about their challenges and rewards — but didn’t address whether they would return.
What was your opinion of the show’s audience?
Hill: We were up 1% in adults 18-34, plus male viewership was up 20%. Whether it’s because of the nominated movies or whatever, that was the most positive sign I’ve seen. A lot of people think of the Oscars as an old show, but those figures were the most positive signs.
Hudlin: We are both Chris Rock fans, and we wanted to youth-ify the audience and broaden the demos, so that was very satisfying. We had a lot of goals: the opulence and elegance people associate with the Oscars; and we wanted a fast-paced show. And because of the political and racial issues this year, we wanted to address them in a forthright manner. And we wanted to showcase the honorees in a way that was fresh and to respect all the branches. And we wanted a show that was funny and touching. I think we did those things.
What was the Academy reaction?
Hill: They were stoked. I spoke with several governors. My favorite was Jeff Kurland. He was quite effusive and he’s a tough audience.
Hudlin: One of my favorite reactions were from some of the top folks who work in sound, who really appreciated the extra effort we put in to present their category. To excite the branches that often get overlooked — that was a particular pleasure.
And ABC?
Hill: After the show, we saw Ben Sherwood and Robert Mills, and the new president Channing Dungey, they were all stoked. They loved the show and loved the pace of it. That was a key priority — that the show moved and changed.
What were some of the highs and lows of the experience?
Hill: We were really pleased at the look of the show. We had an arranged marriage between Derek McLane, the celebrated Broadway designer who has been doing the sets for several years. And I’d worked with (visual artist) Cindy Hauser ages ago, so we wanted a look with the majesty and grandeur of practical sets and the excitement and versatility of graphics. Last night, you saw how they complement each other. It enabled us to do so much within each act. It was the look and structure of the show which gave it appeal, due to combo of the two.
Hudlin: They were real MVP’s for the show. Derek’s been doing sets for the past three years and we were happy to have him back and Cindy was a great addition. They showed that one plus one equals five. The show’s look changed from act to act, from award to award. It created a level of visual excitement that kept the audience engaged.
Hill: There are 142 separate pieces that make up the Oscars; each one of those mini-acts has to be dreamed up, organized, overseen. It has been three months of solid slog, at mixing bays, organizing talent, and constant meetings with Chris and his writers, who have been cloistered away. That’s 142 little shows. What you saw was four months of slog, seven days a week. Our greatest disappointment was the Andy Serkis segment. We wanted him to appear to TV viewers as Gollum, then switch to Caesar, then reveal him in a dinner suit. But the technology isn’t there, so we gave up on that five days ago. However, we have found a company in Norway that might be able to do it in the next 12-18 months.
Hudlin: It was exciting to go to the edge of technology and live performance. That entire act, which was devoted to sound effects and visual effects, that was really satisfying. It was exciting to show off those departments that are the cornerstones of so many movies. It was great to show them off in new ways.
Would you produce the Oscars again?
Hill: It’s too soon to ask!
Hudlin: I’m picking up my renewed passport, so there’s a vacation in my immediate future. And I’m shooting a movie this spring and David has the “American Idol” finale. So for awhile, we will be returning to our “day jobs.” At this point, I’m excited about little things — like Saturday and Sunday.
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