Step aside, Ellen DeGeneres. It’s officially Neil Patrick Harris’ turn to take over the Oscars — and perfectly nail it. The How I Met Your Mother star has already proved he’s fully capable of hosting an award show; what’s more, with his Tony-winning credentials, he’s down to sing, dance, cuss, and do whatever else it takes to keep an audience captivated. But, if you’re not already convinced he’ll do a superb job, then here’s five reasons why you should be stoked to watch NPH do his thing on Sunday, Feb. 22.
1. He’s hosted the Tony Awards not once, not twice, but FOUR times and even scored two Outstanding Special Class Program Emmy awards for hosting the Broadway awards. Not to mention, he even owns a Tony award himself (thanks to Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and even Hugh Jackman foreshadowed he’d host the Oscars during their host-off onstage at the 2011 Tonys.
2. Random, yes, but the multi-hyphenate even made the TV Land Awards watchable in 2009 when he emceed the show and kept the audience entertained with multiple impersonations of classic TV heroes like Dick Van Dyke, Rod Serling, and Richie Cunningham.
3. NPH has also hosted the Emmys twice, once in 2009 and in 2013, and was readily able to take a few knocks from former hosts Jimmy Kimmel, Jane Lynch, Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brien, and even Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, who told the host to “take your pants off and twerk it.”
4. Again, random, but he killed it at the Spike Video Game Awards (!) in 2010, where he proved he’s even able to make fun of himself. After the opening act featured tuxedo clad men breaking out in Broadway song and dance, the actor emerged onstage and exclaimed: “What the f—k do you think this is? The Tonys?”
5. And most importantly, the Doogie Howser, M.D. alum has proved he’s human and admitted that yes, his biggest fear is matching 2014 Oscar host Ellen DeGeneres’ epic audience selfie — and he’s likely gonna do it. “Your selfie shot was the most spectacular, successful thing,” the Gone Girl actor told DeGeneres during an interview on her show. “It worked out so well. But it’s a horrible dark cloud above my head now. How do you try to beat the selfie that broke the Internet?…It turned out to be a great thing. Selfie’s into my brain, so I’m gonna try to do something better.”
And with that, we give you NPH — and the rap he did to close the 2011 Tony Awards, because, yes, that also happened.
