Why Is Hosting the Oscars Such a Cursed Deal?

You’d think hosting the Academy Awards would be much like a 1988 song by Poison: “Nothin’ But a Good Time.” You get to host an entire night of television dedicated to loving movies! Plus, you get to be in the same room as some of the most beloved movie stars in history. Instead, it’s an experience that leaves many disillusioned entertainers feeling like they suddenly bought a house in a 2002 song by Joe Nichols: “Brokenheartsville.” What should be an exciting opportunity to spread some laughs and film references has instead become such a cursed element of the Academy Awards that the ceremony even eschewed a host recently for three consecutive years.

What’s going on? It’s not like every aspect of the Academy Awards is perfect, but hosting the Oscars has taken on an…