Ricky Gervais appears to be leading the race to host the Oscars in 2012, by openly suggesting he would give Hollywood a "two for one offer" by helming both the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards.
Speaking to Access Hollywood at Wednesday's 5th Annual Stand Up For Heroes event in New York City, the British comedian spoke of Eddie Muprhy's decision to step down as host, saying, "I'll do that (Oscars) as well. I'll be in town any way for the Globes. two for one offer.I can knock off 20 per cent. Two for one deal. I'll just stay up there". The comments appear to have been made tongue-in-cheek, although Gervais as host would no doubt increase the Oscars buzz following his controversial hosting of the Globes earlier this year. The Office star is currently faring well in internet polls seeking to determine who the public want to host the ceremony following the departure of Murphy and his creative partner Brett Ratner. The majority appear to be rooting for eight-time host Billy Crystal to return to the awards and the veteran comedian began trending on Twitter shortly after news of Murphy's exit began to filter through. Elsewhere, comedian Chris Rock is ranking highly on Yahoo!'s informal online poll, and the star would surely be a popular choice in Hollywood, although, Stephen Colbert actor Will Ferrell or even Conan O Brien also have the potential to be successful hosts.
In an interesting twist, a Facebook group campaigning for The Muppets to host this year's show has already garnered 16,000 'likes', and with a Hollywood movie on the way - it may not be such a bad idea.