--- description: One producer says he's "writing a new show" title: Chris Rock Won't Quit Hosting the Oscars image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta3e6675c5171e812/69887a6af887dc3385e944ba/gettyimages-505588786.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Chris Rock Won't Quit Hosting the Oscars by [Lynette Rice / Entertainment Weekly](/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Lynette Rice / Entertainment Weekly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 25, 2016 3:11 AM CUT  Chris Rock speaks at the 2016 MLK Now at Riverside Church on Jan. 18, 2016 in New York City. Chris Rock speaks at the 2016 MLK Now at Riverside Church on Jan. 18, 2016 in New York City.Noam Galai—Getty Images by [Lynette Rice / Entertainment Weekly](/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Lynette Rice / Entertainment Weekly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 25, 2016 3:11 AM CUT All the recent talk about boycotts at this year’s Academy Awards have yet to deter Chris Rock, who’s apparently “hard at work” on jokes for the Feb. 28 telecast, the show’s producer said. In an interview with [Entertainment Tonight](http://www.etonline.com/news/180722%5Fexclusive%5Fchris%5Frock%5Fnot%5Fdropping%5Fout%5Fof%5Foscars%5Frewriting%5Fshow%5Faccording%5Fto%5Fproducer%5Freginald%5Fhudlin/ "undefined"), Oscar producer Reginald Hudlin denied that the comedian was looking to bag his gig as the host of the Academy Awards. In fact, Hudlin said, Rock and his writing staff have “locked themselves in a room. As things got a little provocative and exciting, he said, ‘I’m throwing out the show I wrote and writing a new show.’” Hudlin added that the audience should expect plenty of yuks about the [white Oscars](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/14/oscars-so-white-2016 "undefined"). “Yes, the academy is ready for him to do that,” he told ET at the 47th NAACP Image Awards Nominee Luncheon Saturday. “They’re excited about him doing that. They know that’s what we need. They know that’s what the public wants, and we deliver what the people want.” In the last week, several Hollywood stars have declared they will not participate in the ceremony due to the dearth of nominees who are people of color. [Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/20/spike-lee-oscars?iid=sr-link5 "undefined") said they planned to stay away from the show, while [Spike Lee](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/20/spike-lee-oscars?iid=sr-link5 "undefined") has said he will attend an NBA game instead. Others have weighed in on the nominations, including as [Rashida Jones](https://twitter.com/iamrashidajones/status/687992436669452288 "undefined"), [_Straight Outta Compton_ producer Will Packer](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/15/oscars-straight-outta-compton-will-packer-diversity-embarrassing "undefined"), and actor Don Cheadle, who [tweeted at Rock](https://twitter.com/IamDonCheadle/status/688778401151234048?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw "undefined") saying he’d be “parking cars on G level” during the show. Even Rock referenced this year’s nominees [in a tweet](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/15/chris-rock-oscars-academy-awards-teaser "undefined"), calling the ceremony “The White BET Awards.” The controversy prompted the Academy [to change its membership rules](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/18/oscars-2016-academy-diversity "undefined") with the intent to double the number of women and people of color in its ranks by 2020. [_This article originally appeared on Ew.com_](http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/24/oscars-chris-rock-boycott "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/"},"headline":"Chris Rock Won't Quit Hosting the Oscars","datePublished":"2016-01-25T03:11:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:23:53.644Z","description":"One producer says he's \"writing a new show\"","url":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/","keywords":["celebrities"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta3e6675c5171e812/69887a6af887dc3385e944ba/gettyimages-505588786.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lynette Rice / Entertainment Weekly"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta3e6675c5171e812/69887a6af887dc3385e944ba/gettyimages-505588786.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2016 MLK Now","caption":"2016 MLK Now","creditText":"Noam Galai—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/","name":"Chris Rock Won't Quit Hosting the Oscars"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Who Gets to Pick the Oscars?","description":"The exact roster is a well-guarded secret, but according to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, it’s made up of nearly 6,000 voting members.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/11tpmDaq/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-01-14T19:32:23.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/11tpmDaq.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/","duration":"PT2M26S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4192110/chris-rock-academy-awards-host-oscar-diversity/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```