It is no secret that last year’s Oscars telecast produced the lowest ratings in the history of the show.
Hugh Jackman is not going to make that much of a difference this year. Hey, I like Wolverine as much as the next guy, but replacing the traditional stand-up comic host with a song-and-dance man is not going to bring the TV audience back. Without a mass-appeal movie to root for — nominating “The Dark Knight” or “WALL-E” could have solved a lot of problems — the Oscars telecast on tonight could be in for some serious trouble. With “Slumdog Millionaire” as its front-runner, the telecast is in dire need of some assistance. And I am only too happy to help.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences didn’t ask for my help, of course, but I feel an obligation to the organization because I write about the movies, and the academy is all about the movies. They can’t help it if they don’t know how to put on a good TV show about the movies.