Who Should Host the Oscars?

At the very end of Vulture's chat with Hugh Jackman, they asked if the multi-faceted star would again host the Oscars this year. His response: "I don't know. I haven't been asked." Which got us thinking: If it's never too early for Best Picture punditry, then it's just as valid to start calling the odds on who'll host an awards show five months away. We've narrowed down the race to seven candidates, broken down in three categories: The Thoroughbreds, The Tantalizing Possibilities, and The Dark Horses.

The Thoroughbreds

1. Hugh Jackman

Why: Producers Laurence Mark and Bill Condon wanted to do something completely different with last year's show, giving the proceedings a classed-up, throwback feel by putting the orchestra on a thrust stage and bathing the audience in Swarovski-crusted opulence. Hugh was the dashing plastic bridegroom atop their wedding cake (and, some might argue, the glowing bride as well), wowing the crowd with his seemingly boundless gifts for song, dance, and making light-funny at only his own expense. And all the while, he managed to stay effortlessly classy, even when hopping into Frank Langella's lap or singing about pubic hair.

He brought in higher ratings, too: 36.3 million viewers, 4.3 million more than the year before.

Why not: His single 2009 output, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, is considered an Oscar frontrunner in all categories, and will therefore turn the evening into an awkward series of hosting stops and acceptance speech starts.

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