Jimmy Fallon will be host of the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards
How do you reward a “Late Night” host who defeated his programming competition in April? If you’re NBC, you make him the host of an award show.
The peacock network announced Tuesday that Jimmy Fallon would host the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards this summer.
“Jimmy was the natural choice as one of the most promising and likable young entertainers who will now have the chance to display his many talents on television’s biggest night,” said Paul Telegdy, executive vice president of alternative programming at NBC. “His proven skills as a comedian and host — as well as his openness to new ideas — will fully engage audiences and ultimately deliver a lively Emmy telecast.”
It is the first Emmy-hosting gig for the “Saturday Night Live” alum, who is already a seasoned vet of the MTV awards circuit. Fallon has never won an Emmy (nor has he been nominated), but the comedian is no stranger to the Emmys stage. He garnered some attention for his performance at last year’s telecast, during which he mocked the Auto-Tune trend in rap music vocals and fell onstage.
“Jimmy has many talents,” said executive producer Don Mischer. “He can sing, he can dance, he does impersonations, and he does it gracefully and with ease. I think he’ll make a terrific host and we are really looking forward to working with him.”
There has been a recent revival in award show viewership, with the Golden Globes, Emmy Awards, and Grammy Awards all seeing their audiences expand. Last year’s Emmys, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, scored its highest numbers since 2006 with 13.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. And it seems NBC is hoping to continue that trend with Fallon.
At 35, the frequent Twitter user appeals to the highly coveted young adult demographic. As host of “Late Night,” Fallon frequently wins the 18-to-49-year-old demographic with his offbeat humor that includes beer pong matches with Betty White and his “Lick It for Ten” bits.
News of Fallon’s new hosting duties follows last week’s announcement by the network that Ricky Gervais will helm the Golden Globes for a second year.
Just as he did in his late-night slot, Fallon again follows in the footsteps of Conan O’Brien, who has previously hosted two of NBC’s previous Emmy telecasts, and co-hosted one.
If Fallon’s response to his new gig is any indication, he didn’t have a choice.
“Hosting the Emmys has been a dream of mine ever since they told me I was doing it,” Fallon said in a statement.”
Or is that just a taste of the sarcasm we can expect?
The nominations for the prime-time Emmys will be announced July 8. The telecast will be broadcast live Aug. 29.
