Seth MacFarlane Is Hosting The Oscars

By
on

Seth MacFarlane is hosting the Oscars next year. I watched his performance on Saturday Night Live a few weeks ago, and thought he was fantastically entertaining. His recent turn as a performer is enough to almost make me forgive him for his lack of vision as an animation creator.

Also in Cartoon Brew...

  • Rate Seth
    MacFarlane’s
    Performance Tonight

    sethmacfarlane-oscar

  • Seth Macfarlane to
    Host The 85th
    Annual Academy

    0629_sethmacfarlane_630x420-570x380

  • Seth MacFarlane To
    Host “SNL” Season
    Premiere

    Seth MacFarlane
  • Karl Hungus

    Who the HELL is this guy’s agent?!??!

    • Funkybat

      “Hell” is the operative word, there!

  • Haterz…

    I thought he was coming out of the closet but this is surprising as well. Idk about you guys but I enjoyed that SNL and think the guys pretty talented.

    I mean, you have to hand it to the guy for selling 3 shows that are all the same thing.

    1)Family Guy
    2)Republican Family Guy
    3)Black Family Guy

    I haven’t seen Ted yet but I will eventually. Either way, I think it’s a good choice, congrats to him.

    • Drew

      he’s dating that hot chick from Game of Thrones. what closet is this you speak of?

  • Dana B

    At least he’ll be remembered in the animation world by many as he rose to the top. Not sure if I can say the same for him looking back….if he ever does that is…

    Well, hopefully when he presents the animation category, he will do it with some respect(unlike some comedy man that we all wish we could forget).

    • Geoff

      Actually, I did forget – who?

  • Julieta

    Next thing we know, he’s gonna be named People’s Sexiest Man Alive.

    • Up North

      And when Jay Leno kicks the bucket, he’ll take over the Tonight Show.

      • Funkybat

        That would be quite an improvement, honestly.

  • http://otterslide.com Bryon Carson

    Don’t know him, never met him, and never worked for him (and not looking too really), but I’ve got to say good for him! Life is clearly pretty sweet for him right now and we should all hope for at least a fraction of that kind of success in our own endeavors. I hope he does a good job.

  • http://mayersononanimation.blogspot.com Mark Mayerson

    Any truth to the rumors that Romney is dumping Ryan and replacing him with McFarlane?

  • Matt Sullivan

    Seriously, did he sell his soul or something? WHY IN GOD’S NAME does Seth get…well..EVERYTHING?

    Yes I know, I’ve defended Seth in the past but my job at Fox is ending now and…dammit I’m angry.

  • Marie

    The producers of the Oscar ceremony just don’t get it. Regardless of who’s hosting (and I personally think the host job should be completely eliminated), the ceremony will drag as long as it opens with a 20 minute comedy monologue and has five reeeeealy long montages (only In Memoriam is necessary.) Regardless of the tweaks made to the broadcast, the fact remains that Hollywood is neck deep in fear of failure which in turn produces unwatchable, grossly expensive misfires like John Carter. None of these problems will be helped by a “hip and happening” host. Moreover, I will be curious to see if MacFarlane’s brand of humor translates well to this environment.

    • Funkybat

      I think the Emmys would be a more natural fit for Seth’s humor than the Oscars. While he’s doubtlessly a film fan, a lot of Seth’s pop-culture observations revolve around TV shows more than movies. Most movies he seems to geek out over are either from the 80s or the 30s-50s. I will say I’m more likely to tune in this year, since I’m usually entertained by Seth even when he’s off his game.

  • Uli Meyer

    I saw him perform at the Royal Albert Hall in London, singing Broadway songs accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra during this years Proms and he was pretty damn good. A man with many talents.

  • Brian O.

    I’m more impressed by Amid’s ability to “give credit where credit is due” compliment while still acknowledging MacFarlane’s hacky animation successes.

    Still wish those with real cartooning talent could sell a copy-cat show like MacFarlane’s and then greatly (and subversely) raise the bar from the inside.

  • Wayne L.

    “His recent turn as a performer is enough to almost make me forgive him for his lack of vision as an animation creator.”

    i love how much you people love to hate on this guy. Typical competitive, egotistical animators. zero support for each other.
    It’s exactly why we don’t have any control over our own industry. Instead of building each other up and being supportive, we’re too busy cutting everyone down and clamoring over one another to get a glimpse of the sun.

    This dude is breaking into territory very few animators ever have.
    this guy it giving animators credibility as performers and creative, influential minds.

    You’d rather he sit back and do absolutely nothing but collect his family guy check?

    good for him for branching out.
    I’d love the world to see that animators aren’t just fat, neck bearded assholes sitting in a cave.

    • wever

      No I don’t hate on animators. Only people like Seth who get things that quite frankly deserve to be for someone else. “PEOPLE”, not “person”. In fact, aside from voice acting he barely ever really animates anymore. When was the last time he actually drew something?

      • http://www.bobharper.net Bob Harper

        So would you say Walt Disney didn’t deserve his success because he didn’t draw as much once his studio got started. Seth by no means is Walt, but he had a vision, and plan and worked hard, and still does. I think he deserves his success and wish him more.

      • Wayne L.

        so because he hasn’t remained a cog his entire career and has climbed the ladder, we’re supposed to hate him?

        “how dare he not be an inbetweener for 40 years!”

        the nerve of that guy, branching out to do new things.

        you could easily say the same thing about matt groening, or mike judge, or tim burton. but you wouldn’t because seth is an easy target for idiots like you.

        I’ve worked with him. he still draws over storyboards and offers his own revisions. granted he’s not the most talented animator who ever lived, but show him some respect.

        when you host the oscars, SNL, have 3 successful primetime shows at once, or have your feature film directorial debut be a box office hit, then you can start to criticize him.

        you all hate on his shows. yes, they suck. but THREE prime time animated series creating jobs for animators like us. you’re really going to complain about that?

        • Taylor

          Like. Like. Like. Like. Like.

          He got Family Guy running when he was 25. I’m 26, and every day I grow a day further from accomplishing such a massive achievement.

          Family Guy/American Dad/Cleveland may not be the most breathtaking visual rides, but he makes people laugh. Really hard. Probably to the point of peeing themselves. He entertains. He does his job. AND he employs tons of people.

          An inspiration to me.

    • h

      OH MY GOD DO YOU EVEN REALIZE THAT ALL OF FAMILY GUY IS ANIMATED IN KOREA FOR PEANUTS

      It’s a good thing you’d love to see animators who aren’t fat neckbeards in caves because you’re living in that world right now because they’ve NEVER been known to look like that??? You are so far off-base on what animation really is I’m surprised you feel comfortable at all speaking with so much confidence when McFarlane doesn’t do any actual animating anymore. He’s too busy regurgitating his scripts and seeing what racist, sexist, and homophobic jokes he can veil by basting on a heavy layer of canned liberalism so people feel progressive for watching when really they’re the common denominator.

      • http://whataboutthad.com Thad

        Other than the misspelling of MacFarlane, I agree with “h”. (Really, guys, is it that hard? It’s right up there at the top of your browser.) How many of you realize that the MacFarlane shows are another batch in a long line of shows that utilize great artists to draw badly; that the layout guys and directors must make extraneous changes at the eleventh hour because the writers had epiphanies on what would be funnier – ON A REGULAR BASIS?

        I can’t believe anyone can even compare MacFarlane and Walt Disney. Disney was an entrepreneurial genius and built an empire. His cartoons forced everyone else to get better in the thirties. All MacFarlane is is largely responsible for a dismal period of American pop culture that values the noisomely referential over originality. I saw TED and thought it was absolutely dickless cinema. The average FAMILY GUY episode is more biting.

        It’d be nice if one of these shows offered an animated equivalent to SEINFELD, FRASIER, etc. Only THE SIMPSONS did for a few years. We haven’t been offered another one since.

    • http://www.slaptoons.com Gavin Freitas

      “i love how much you people love to hate on this guy. Typical competitive, egotistical animators. zero support for each other.
      It’s exactly why we don’t have any control over our own industry. Instead of building each other up and being supportive, we’re too busy cutting everyone down and clamoring over one another to get a glimpse of the sun.”

      I second that. I’ve got such little support from my animation community for my kickstarter campaign, but fortunately animation fans and friends have been supporting the project and I’m doing well because of that.

      I do love this website, but we need to cut Seth some slack. He’s giving people in animation jobs. I can think of other horrible people that we should hate on, and Seth is not one of them.

    • Professor Widebottom

      The success of this guy has truly mystified me but obviously he does have some sort of wind in his sails. That’s not to say that success, especially in terms of celebrity, is defined by merit. It may be nurtured by having the support of the right media handlers at the right time. I don’t have an agenda to hammer him, I just don’t think he’s really offering anything new as an artist. He’s pleasant and facile but I know a lot of people like that. The only difference that they’re not famous. It’s just that simple and arbitrary.

  • http://cartoonsforbreakfast.blogspot.com Brian C.

    The man is a showman, I’ll grant him that. Maybe this whole animation thing will just be a stepping stone to his becoming a famous TV personality.

  • chris

    Granted I haven’t seen him on SNL. but Seth Mcfarlane hosting the oscars? Ew.

  • http://she-thing.blogspot.com Caty

    Sorry, but please, please, pretty please. Could someone explain me what is so amazing, much amazing his stuff rather than South Park, Team America, Beavis & Butthead, Gorillaz, Mad Magazine, Cow & Chicken, Ren & Stimpy, the Simpsons, even Adventure Time? (not a retorical question) What is he good at? Why are his series so great? In Ted he’s constantly expressing something and contradicting himself, those gags sound as if he needs a life NOW. He doesn’t want to express anything. At least Woody Allen has the b*lls of admiting he’s insecure and has the humilty of being conscious when he’s wrong or not. And some of the people he’s surrounded made me feel as if I loved pork chops and one day I entered a butcher’s “back room” and began to throw up.
    Anyhow- I don’t want to sound like a know-it-all, kind of came here for “the truth”. I can’t imagine myself of writing those plots + dialogues. I would feel as if someone was telling me to steal a purse and saying to me “just try to forget it’s a human being you’re stealing”

  • Mac

    His success is not that of an ascendant cartoonist or “cartoon creator”, so you’ll never make sense of it by looking at it through that mold. He seems more of a Gary Marshall type.

  • http://moviecappa.blogspot.com Mike Caracappa

    I’m sorry, but this is totally classless. McFarlane represents the lowest common denominator of anything representing quality. I haven’t watched the Oscars for years now just because I feel the show has lost any sort of integrity or respect for what the award represents, and now it’s just a grab for ratings. The audience they’re trying to pull in doesn’t give a shit about any of this. It’s bad enough McFarlane has become the ambassador for what animation represents to people in this country, and any respect I had left for the Oscar show has just gone down the toilet. This is totally wrong and it sucks.

    • wever

      I bet they took cues from Chris Rock’s speech from last year.

  • drutter

    Lucky indeed. He was originally supposed to be on one of the 9/11 flights that was hijacked but missed his plane. Mark Wahlberg was booked on the same flight but cancelled at the last minute.

  • Ara

    I really liked him on SNL, despite everyone groaning over it. I guess we just have certain people we love to hate, right?

    However, for me it’s kind of the opposite, I hate to like him–I like American Dad and I liked his SNL appearance (one little thing though. Before I watched his monologue, I had a hypothesis that he would: (a) Plug his stuff; (b) do the voices; and (c) sing. He did all those things–not much to his bad of tricks anymore, huh?) I’m not sure how I feel about him hosting the Oscars just yet…for some reason I don’t expect to like him/find him very funny there (and I expect some dumb Family Guy bit), but what the hey? Can’t knock it till I actually see it.

  • David

    Not since Walt Disney and Al Capp has an animator or cartoonist been so visible to the public.

    • http://whataboutthad.com Thad

      “One of these things is not like the other…”

  • Sotiris

    The reason a lot of people don’t like MacFarlane is not because they’re envious or petty but because they truly believe he doesn’t deserve the success he’s getting.

    There have been plenty of cases of animators and people working in the industry who have succeeded and the animation community has celebrated and supported them because they respect their art and their accomplishments.

    Animators and other artists are not the egotistical and hateful people internet blogs make them out to be. Most of them are really cool, passionate people who are caring and supportive of each other.

    Personally, I find it unfair that there are so many amazingly talented people out there who are working incredibly hard but have’t managed to ‘make’ it, and yet a guy like Seth who I find utterly talentless has so effortlessly.

    Is it the first time someone in Hollywood enjoys the wealth and fame they don’t deserve? No. But it’s only natural to be bothered a little bit more when this happens in your line of work.

    Perhaps it’s a matter of personal taste and perhaps I’m the only one who feels this way but I haven’t liked anything Seth has done so far. I don’t care for him as an animation creator, nor as a comedian (his humor is lowbrow, juvenile, and trite), nor as a voice actor (all of his characters sound the same), and not even as a singer (I’ve heard better Sinatra impressions in 2nd-rate Las Vegas shows — I don’t get why everyone is so impressed with his singing).

    The point being, most people don’t like him because they don’t see any artistic or entertaining value in his work, not because they’re resentful or mean-spirited.

    • Mr. Semaj

      “Animators and other artists are not the egotistical and hateful people internet blogs make them out to be. Most of them are really cool, passionate people who are caring and supportive of each other. ”

      Not that Cartoon Brew helps prove that case…

      “The point being, most people don’t like him because they don’t see any artistic or entertaining value in his work, not because they’re resentful or mean-spirited. ”

      …because given how frequently CB brings up a man that they hate SO MUCH, it’s hard to tell.

      • http://elblogderg.blogspot.com Roberto González

        There is a lot of hate towards certain projects and movies, I guess, but not so much personal hate concerning people that are not MacFarlane.

        It’s not like people here don’t praise other directors they like regardless if they are succesful or not.

    • http://elblogderg.blogspot.com Roberto González

      Yeah, you nailed it.

      Personally it’s not like I think he doesn’t have any talent or that his shows doesn’t have a single good idea or joke in them, but compared to other stuff I find them mediocre at best.

      Now that we are talking a lot about Adam Sandler, as far as lowbrow humor goes I guess Seth’s stuff is a little more irreverent or interesting than, say, Jack and Jill, but I really wish he had came up with a less stiff drawing style or slightly more appealing character design. American Dad is entertaining sometimes but mostly cause they have some good writers in it, not because of the brilliant concept or characters.

      I do enjoy his singing and while I don’t think he’s the best voice actor in the world I respect him in that department.

      I don’t really know him as a person. For the most part he looks like a good guy, though there is something about him (and that translates into his shows really) that feels a little cynical. As an entertainer, I think he’s ok, but not awesome. Ricky Gervais (for irreverent jokes) or Neil Patrick Harris (for comedic songs) make me laugh much louder.

      I’m fine with him having a moderate success, but when I think his shows are more famous than Ren and Stimpy, Dexter’s Laboratory or almost The Simpsons at this point-not to mention other shows that didn’t get the fame they deserved like Clone High or Mission Hill- I kinda feel something is very wrong.

      Anyway, he couldn’t possibly do it worse than James Franco.

    • peter campofiori

      I agree Sotiris, but we are now living in a world where Snooki and Pauly D are held in the same regard as celebrities with talent who have worked hard to achieve their success.

    • Taylor

      Less successful people tend to be the loudest when they speak on who “deserves” what. ESPECIALLY in entertainment. Whether it be Kristen Stewart, Justin Bieber, a pro athlete or in this case, Seth Macfarlane.

      He doesn’t deserve the success he’s getting? So he hasn’t crafted a commercial and pop-culture sensation? He isn’t at the helm of a monumental success of a television show that has resurrected itself after cancelations due to popular demand?

      If he didn’t deserve success he wouldn’t have it. Certainly not at this level. I know people at certain jobs who only have the job because a family member is an exec or has an in. One could argue that perhaps they don’t deserve such positions. But that play expires after you’re essentially on top of the world.

      If his work was garbage, no one would watch it. The shows would all flop. Ted would have flopped. The academy wouldn’t have him hosting the Oscars.

      If you literally can’t find any entertaining value in his work, you clearly have no grasp on pop-culture and I’d assume you have no aspirations to create goofy content for primetime entertainment for the masses. Which is fine. But lets take a break from the “i’m so indie. I’m so sophisticated. Fart jokes and ethnic jokes are so petty.” We’re not impressed.

      • Up North

        “If his work was garbage, no one would watch it.”

        Au contraire, garbage is EXACTLY WHY people are watching “Here comes Honey Boo Boo”!

        “No one in this world has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people. Nor has anyone ever lost public office thereby.”

        -Henry Louis Mencken

      • http://elblogderg.blogspot.com Roberto González

        So, you’re saying Justin Bieber deserves his success?

      • Funkybat

        “If his work was garbage, no one would watch it.”

        This is “market economy” based thinking in regards to relative quality of art, a view that is illogical on its face. Reminds me of a guy I know who decides what movies are worth buying (or downloading) based on their box office numbers. Bigger numbers = better movie. I might also mention that this guy barely graduated high school and is practically illiterate.

        Seth MacFarlane is a talented businessman, a talented voice performer and singer, and a skilled observer of what’s “funny” to a certain segment of the population. That in and of itself doesn’t make his shows “better” than, say, The Venture Bros., which gets far less media hype/ratings/commercial success, but that almost any animation artist would agree has more depth, intelligence, and visual flair.

        Family Guy and its spinoffs make money because the jokes are relatable and amusing to a broad audience, especially males 18-35. Even if there are large contingents of people who think his shows are garbage (and I don’t mean animators, but rather the elderly, Christian conservatives, and a LOT of women) it doesn’t matter as long as a lot of young and young-ish people with buying power tune in. Nevertheless, none of that means that is is “more successful” as a work of art. But then, it is called “Show Business.”

      • Mark

        I’m under the impression garbage sells at the moment, ‘reality TV’shows are more popular than ever. I think it says more about the world at large.

        I don’t find him funny at least not clever funny. That said, in my mind, look at what he’s done, quit complaining and lets get off our asses and try and sell our own stuff instead of slaving for everyone else.

        With over 6 billion people on the earth There’s room for all sorts of ideast

  • Lala_Marin

    I’m going to be completely honest: I don’t want to watch. I studied film in undergrad, and am currently building up a portfolio for grad school. I watch movies the way most people listen to music. I named my laptop “Grace Kelly.” My solutions for boredom are: 1)watch Die Hard or 2) Watch The Lion King. I once cancelled a movie date because the guy who asked me out thought The King’s Speech looked boring. And I DON’T want to watch the Oscars. Because of this. Why did this happen?

    • Chris Sobieniak

      You grew up, that’s all!

  • Joel

    They should get Sath Mcfarland (of “Family Man,” “United States Father,” and “DET” fame) to host the Oscars.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FujrABm-MGM

  • Optimist

    Brad Bird would be a better choice.

    • Lala_Marin

      You just broke my heart. What could have been…

  • Drew

    from broke animator to hosting the Oscars.

    Wow. Dream big everyone!

  • Toonio

    When you have a godfather like him, talent comes second place.

    • Haterz…

      Can you elaborate?

  • Victor Kong

    No, no. Genndy for Oscars. Seth MacFarlane for Primetime Emmys.

  • Douglass Abramson

    He has name recognition, a pleasant singing voice, can sell a joke and doesn’t look like The Elephant Man. What else is needed to host The Oscars?

  • Hey now

    I’m not gonna hate on MacFarlane. Sure, the only reasonable explanation for his 911 near-miss, hot-as-hell new gal pal, and unheard-of success has to be a deal with the devil, but more power to him.

    I think animators are pissed because this is all unprecedented in the animation field. Worse examples of mediocrity rising to the top happens every day in the live-action acting/directing world.

    • http://she-thing.blogspot.com Caty

      I think it’s pretty simple. There were some quality animated series out there and now they descended to mediocre due to “trying to adapt to actuality”. Now i can only watch series my sister likes; Spongebob, Adventure Time, Phineas and Ferb, Superhero Squad, etc. I love the series, but I wish that if I’m 23, I could enjoy something else. Like the Simpsons. But oh wait, it’s still trying to adapt tp series nowadays.
      Family Guy doesn’t adapt to anything. It doesn’t try anything new. It’s just.. there.

      I don’t consider someone who wins money by writing “Peter falls on the floor. Screams and bleeds. Bleeds. Blood is on the floor. Hold this for about a minute. He bleeds. And then he screams. This will make people more nervous or retarded.” a person who is dedicated to his work.

      I’m not even an animator. I just like animation.

      • Polecat

        Agreed. I was also wondering if I’m the only person left alive who has noticed that MacFarlane can’t really draw. A lot of the Nicktoons I grew up with were much better drawn than Family Guy.

  • Billy Batz

    That skit is terrible with the dad’s swimtrunks,let’s have more of that please! Let’s stay mediocre!

  • Faithful Eediot

    Seth is kind of like animation’s equvalent to Stan Lee or Steve Jobs in life. Their early work was innovative and genuinely good, but after they got really successful, they reinvented themselves as self-promoters and coasted on their legacies and hogged the limelight. The public continues to eat up his work unthinkingly, just cause so much attention is drawn to it.

    There are Family Guy episodes that still make me laugh my ass off, but one of those hasn’t been made in a long, long time.

  • I.N. Cold

    Oh God. He’s going to sing isn’t he? Faux-Sinatra style and all…

  • Kevin

    Seth MacFarlane is a fine man and a major talent. I’m sure everyone in the animation business is glad to see him succeed.

  • Polecat

    Good Lord, why did I skip Billy Crystal’s turn as this year’s host to go see “Safe House”? Is this some kind of cosmic punishment?

  • Zappo

    Wow! There is a lot of bitterness in here.

    I find Seth’s work really entertaining. Very funny indeed, and I loved Ted. He is obviously a multi-talented guy who started out doing pretty much everything himself – writing, story boarding, voicing, animating, lyrics etc. When projects get this big and they need to create stuff quickly they need to increase the team size and no one man can do everything. He decided that there are others who can do the animation better than him so he concentrated on the other things like writing and voicing. You can’t blame him for that. Thinking that he should have stuck to his roots and continued to do everything himself or call him a sell-out is really pompous.

    Personally I think he deserves to be on screen himself as he is incredibly funny. He has helped push adult targeted cartoons to the masses. He wasn’t the first but where others have gone stale he stepped in and continued with the torch. Some may say his stuff is now getting stale too but there isn’t anything else to take over yet and I still really enjoy the shows he is involved in.