Eddie Murphy: Wise choice to host Oscars?
It's the talk of Hollywood.
The biggest one-night gig in the star-studded town is going to comedian and actor Eddie Murphy, who's been named host of the 84th annual Academy Awards, in February.
As CBS News contributor Priya David Clemens points out, Murphy seems to have done it all in a showbiz career spanning nearly 30 years, from "Saturday Night Live" to groundbreaking standup to A-list leading man.
Now, as Oscars host, Murphy will be introduced to a whole a new generation.
Eddie Murphy picked to host Oscars
Entertainment Weekly's Jessica Shaw says simply, "Getting Eddie Murphy is a homerun. He's a comedy legend."
In a written statement, Murphy says he's "extremely honored to join the great list of past Academy Award hosts, from (Bob) Hope and (Johnny) Carson to (Billy) Crystal, (Steve) Martin and (Whoopi) Goldberg, among others."
What do you think? Is Murphy a good choice? Let us know in the comments are of this story.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' attempt to woo a younger audience with actors Anne Hathaway and James Franco as hosts this year was seen as a flop, Clemens says and, by choosing Murphy, show producers are going back to the tried-and-true -- a star comedian.
Movie fans CBS News spoke to gave the choice a thumbs-up.
"I think he's going to be a great host, he's very funny, he's witty, got good banter," said one.
"I've been waiting for this guy to host the Oscars for a long time, 'cause he's good on his feet, you know, good comedian, and they need somebody, somebody good like that," said another.
"He's perfect, perfect for adults, he's for children, he's for everybody. He's good,' said a third.
Although Murphy was an Oscar nominee in 2007 for "Dreamgirls," it's been years since he's had a big hit at the box office.
But Variety's Brian Lowry pointed out that, "Eddie Murphy is a multi-talented star, but if you look at his career over the last decade, really, this century, the most successful role he's had has been as the animated donkey in Shrek."
Now, though, Murphy has a chance to re-ignite his career.
Said Entertainment Weekly's Shaw, "Is Eddie Murphy going to be great? Does he have all the credentials? Absolutely. Can he pull off the show? We'll see."
When he won a Golden Globe for "Dreamgirls," Murphy told CBS News he was ready to take on anything, saying, "I like to do all kinds of different things. I started really young, and I've been in the movie business a long time. But I'm still a relatively young man, so I'm going to try to do different stuff, so when I look back, I can look back and say, 'Wow, I did everything!"'
Perhaps not coincidentally, Clemens notes, Murphy has a film coming out this year directed by Brett Ratner -- one of the Oscar telecast's producers. It's a comedy called "Tower Heist."