See Who Has Hosted the Oscars the Most Times Skyler Caruso, Emily KrauserSun, March 15, 2026 at 9:30 AM UTC 0 Billy Crystal performs onstage during the 84th Academy Awards at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2012; Oscars host Whoopi Goldberg shows off one of her costumes she wore during the 71st Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in L.A. on March 21, 1999; Host Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the 95th Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre in L.A.
See Who Has Hosted the Oscars the Most Times
Skyler Caruso, Emily KrauserSun, March 15, 2026 at 9:30 AM UTC
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Billy Crystal performs onstage during the 84th Academy Awards at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2012; Oscars host Whoopi Goldberg shows off one of her costumes she wore during the 71st Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in L.A. on March 21, 1999; Host Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the 95th Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre in L.A. on March 12, 2023 -
Bob Hope holds the record for hosting the Academy Awards the most times, with 19 appearances solo or as a co-host
Whoopi Goldberg is the only woman to host the Oscars multiple times
Late-night talk show hosts, including Johnny Carson, Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O'Brien, are popular choices for the biggest night in Hollywood
It's not easy to successfully host the Academy Awards, let alone be invited back to do so multiple times. However, a few leading men — and one woman — have done just that.
The first Oscars ceremony was held in 1929, and since then, the awards show has experimented with everything from solo acts and dynamic groups to going hostless. The most memorable emcees, though, leaned funny, like Billy Crystal, who hosted a whopping nine ceremonies. Still, 10 fewer times than the record-holder and four-timer Whoopi Goldberg.
Conan O'Brien will only be on his second round when he takes the Oscar stage on March 15, 2026, and only time will tell if he'll hit four like his late-night talk show host brethren Jimmy Kimmel or even five like Johnny Carson.
From Hope to Kimmel, here's a look at the celebrities who've hosted the Academy Awards at least three times.
01 of 10
Bob Hope: 19 Times
Bob Hope hosts the 50th Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in L.A. on April 3, 1978Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Bob Hope — known for his work alongside the legendary Bing Crosby — hosted the Academy Awards a record 19 times.
The British-American comedian and actor first took to the stage at the 12th Academy Awards in 1940. Revered for his jokes and witty one-liners, he hosted the show's first televised event in 1953, in addition to its first broadcast in color in 1966.
The icon's last hosting gig came in 1978, but in 1991, he returned to the Oscar stage while Crystal was emcee.
"Remember me? The Macaulay Culkin of 1927?" he joked, according to the New York Historical Museum.
Hope died on July 27, 2003, at age 100.
Years hosted: 1940-1943, 1945, 1946, 1953, 1955, 1958, 1959-1962, 1965-1968, 1975 and 1978.
02 of 10
Billy Crystal: Nine Times
Billy Crystal hosts the 84th Academy Awards at the Hollywood & Highland Center in L.A. on Feb. 26, 2012Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Crystal, who got his big break on the ABC sitcom Soap and in 1989's When Harry Met Sally, has hosted the Oscars nine times.
"To me, a show needs a host; you need a center," Crystal told PEOPLE in 2021 before adding, "I had so many great memories hosting the show. It was a history of cinema for me."
The comedian, director and actor took the stage for the first time at the 62nd Academy Awards in 1990, and the last time he hosted was at the 84th ceremony in 2012. He has opened up about how he'll most likely never host the Oscars again.
Years hosted: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2004 and 2012
03 of 10
Johnny Carson: Five Times
Johnny Carson hosts the 54th Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in L.A. on March 29, 1982Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Carson was no stranger to the hosting scene, most notably recognized for his three-decades-long run as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Regarded as "The King of Late Night," Carson hosted the Oscars five times before his death in 2005.
The 51st Academy Awards in 1979 marked Carson's first time as host. He hosted the show for four consecutive years before returning to the stage in 1984 to lead the 56th ceremony.
Years hosted: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1984
04 of 10
Jack Lemmon: Four Times
Jack Lemmon hosts the 57th Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in L.A. on March 25, 1985Credit: ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Not only has Jack Lemmon hosted the Oscars four times, but he's a two-time winner as well — he took home Best Supporting Actor for Mister Roberts in 1955 and Best Actor for Save the Tiger in 1973.
Lemmon first hosted alongside Hope, Rosalind Russell, James "Jimmy" Stewart and Donald Duck (yes, you read that correctly) at the show's 30th ceremony in 1958. In 1972, he hosted again alongside Helen Hayes, Alan King and Sammy Davis Jr.
The actor, who died in June 2001 at age 76, led the show solo for the first time in 1964 and for his last time in 1985.
Years hosted: 1958, 1964, 1972 and 1985
05 of 10
Whoopi Goldberg: Four Times
Whoopi Goldberg hosts the 74th Academy Awards at the Kodak Theatre in L.A. on March 24, 2002Credit: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images
Goldberg, who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 1990 for Ghost, hosted the Academy Awards four times.
The actress, comedian and host of The View made history as the first Black woman to emcee the Oscars solo, which she did at the 66th ceremony in 1994. She also has a place in awards show history as one of the few stars to earn an EGOT (winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award).
Goldberg is also the only woman to have hosted the awards ceremony more than three times. Three women have hosted or co-hosted twice: Ellen DeGeneres, Jane Fonda and Goldie Hawn.
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Years hosted: 1994, 1996, 1999 and 2002
06 of 10
Jimmy Kimmel: Four Times
Jimmy Kimmel hosts the 89th Academy Awards at the Hollywood & Highland Center in L.A. on Feb. 26, 2017Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty
Kimmel has brought his late-night hosting chops to the Oscar stage four times.
The actor, comedian and talk show host kicked off his Oscars spree in 2017, which also happened to be the evening of the infamous Envelopegate.
After a brief hiatus, he made a successful return in 2023 following the memorable all-female emcee lineup of Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes.
"I always dreamed of hosting the Oscars exactly four times," Kimmel said in a statement about hosting the 2024 Oscars.
Years hosted: 2017, 2018, 2023 and 2024
07 of 10
Jerry Lewis: Three Times
Jerry Lewis speaks at the podium during the 28th Academy Awards at the RKO Pantages Theatre in L.A. on March 21, 1956Credit: Bettmann/Getty
Nicknamed "The King of Comedy," Jerry Lewis hosted the Oscars three times, but the third time was not necessarily "the charm" for the actor, who died in 2017.
Lewis emceed consecutively at the 28th and 29th Academy Awards, followed by his third and final gig at the 31st ceremony in 1959.
That last time is infamously recognized as the ceremony in which the final award was presented ahead of schedule, causing the show to end 20 minutes early.
As the first host in history to experience this situation, Lewis put his improvisational skills to use to kill time, rallying actors onstage to sing "There's No Business Like Show Business." That's live TV for you!
Years hosted: 1956, 1957 and 1959
08 of 10
David Niven: Three Times
Host David Niven (center) poses with an Oscar during the 30th Academy Awards at the RKO Pantages Theatre in L.A. on March 26, 1958Credit: Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
David Niven hosted the Oscars three times, and they were all memorable for various reasons.
He first co-hosted alongside multiple emcees, including Donald Duck, in 1958. The following year, at the 31st Academy Awards, the British actor made history as the first and only person to ever host and receive an Oscar in the same year when he received the honor of Best Actor for Separate Tables in 1959.
Notably, during his last hosting gig at the 46th ceremony in 1974, famed photographer Robert Opel streaked across the Oscar stage.
Niven died on July 29, 1983. He was 73.
Years hosted: 1958, 1959 and 1974
09 of 10
Steve Martin: Three Times
Steve Martin co-hosts the 82nd Academy Awards at the Kodak Theatre in L.A. on March 7, 2010Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Also an EGOT winner, Steve Martin has hosted the Oscars three times, plus he opened the 92nd Academy Awards alongside Chris Rock in 2020, the year there was no host.
Martin's first two emcee stints in 2001 and 2003 were solo, but for his third time commanding the famous crowd at the 82nd Academy Awards in 2010, he was joined by co-host Alec Baldwin.
Years hosted: 2001, 2003 and 2010
10 of 10
Conrad Nagel: Three Times
Conrad Nagel hosts the 25th Academy Awards at the NBC International Theatre in New York City on March 19, 1953Credit: NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
A leading man in the 1920s and 1930s and a co-founder of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Conrad Nagel hosted the Oscars three times.
Nagel commanded two of the earliest ceremonies: the 3rd Academy Awards in 1930 and the fifth iteration in 1932. During the latter ceremony, which he co-hosted with Lionel Barrymore, Nagel was the Academy president.
The silent screen star had a notable gap between his last two gigs, as he didn't return to the Academy Awards stage as master of ceremonies until 1953, when he co-hosted with Hope.
Nagel, who died in 1970 at age 72, was given an Honorary Academy Award in 1940 for his work on the Motion Picture Relief Fund, per The New York Times.
Years hosted: 1930, 1932 and 1953
on People
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Published: March 15, 2026 at 05:45AM on Source: PRIME TIME
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