Chris Rock Teases An Oscar Blackout For Sunday Night

This Sunday’s Oscar ceremony is must-watch television. Not just because Leonardo DiCaprio is almost certainly going to finally pick up the Best Actor gong that he has been craving for the best part of two decades -- and this is the most open Best Picture field in years-- but mostly because Chris Rock is hosting and is sure to have plenty to say about the all-white nominations in the acting categories. The comedian has uploaded the perfect tease to his Twitter account ahead of the ceremony too, suggesting that Sunday is going to be a "blackout."

Now, what does the above video, which is just 15 seconds of static, actually tease? Not a lot. Except that the comedian will undoubtedly be down to cause all kinds of mayhem relating to the lack of diversity of the nominations, which has overshadowed the entire build up to the 88th Academy Awards.

Obviously, Chris Rock is going to mention the controversy. But it will be interesting to see how much it dominates his monologue, jokes and quips throughout the course of the ceremony. Constantly bringing it up and joking about it could cause those in attendance, as well as the producers and organizers of the event, to become truly uncomfortable.

But, unfortunately for those in charge, this is the bed that they have made with the nominations. And now they’ve just got to sit back and take the abuse that will undoubtedly come their way from Chris Rock. Either way, it’s going to make for vital viewing. And the excitement and intrigue over what the comedian is actually going to say during his hosting duties should at least result in the ceremony getting improved viewing figures. So, every cloud and all that.

https://youtu.be/DFNkaKzKf1U


This is actually the second time that Chris Rock has hosted the pinnacle of the awards season, with the comedian having previously done so in 2005 at the 77th Academy Awards with mixed results. We’ll get to see if Chris Rock can improve upon these efforts this Sunday, with the 88th Academy Awards kicking off at around 8PM EST. You can head over to Cinema Blend throughout the night to keep track of the goings on at the Dolby Theatre. Are you ready for a blackout?