The Awardist Oscars Oscars: Jimmy Kimmel to host in 2017 By Joey Nolfi Joey Nolfi Entertainment Weekly's Oscars expert, 'RuPaul's Drag Race' beat reporter, host of 'Quick Drag' Twitter Spaces, and cohost of 'EW's BINGE' podcast. Almost all of the drag content on this site is my fault (you're welcome). EW's editorial guidelines Published on December 5, 2016 07:05PM EST Photo: Richard Cartwright/ABC via Getty Images The Oscars have a host: Jimmy Kimmel will emcee the Academy Awards in 2017. Kimmel confirmed the news via his Twitter account, hours after the news was reported by multiple outlets. Though the 49-year-old Jimmy Kimmel Live! headliner has hosted several high-profile awards shows in the past, including the Primetime Emmy Awards in 2012 and 2016, his upcoming gig at the Oscars will mark his first appearance as ringleader for the film industry’s biggest night. In August, ABC renewed a deal with the Oscars to broadcast the Academy Awards through 2028, extending its pre-existing agreement by eight years; Kimmel’s show, of course, also airs on ABC. The network has broadcast the Oscars more than 50 times throughout the Academy’s 89-year history. The Chris Rock-hosted 2016 ceremony dropped viewership to an eight-year low, averaging 34.5 million total viewers and a 10.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic. The telecast was dogged by controversy as well after an all-white slate of nominees appeared across all four acting categories for the second straight year. The 89th Oscars will take place at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017 in Hollywood. ABC’s live broadcast of the ceremony will begin at 7 p.m. ET. The Hollywood Reporter first broke the Kimmel news.