Chris Rock publicly confirmed earlier this week that he turned down an offer to host next year's Oscar ceremony. Rock made the announcement during his show at the Arizona Financial Theatre in Phoenix, where he also revealed that he was offered a Super Bowl commercial that he turned down as well.

He compared hosting the Oscars again to returning to the scene of a crime, referencing this year's incident where he was smacked on stage by actor Will Smith after making a joke directed at his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. Rock said that hosting the Oscars again would be like "asking Nicole Brown Simpson to go back to the restaurant where she left her glasses before being killed." Rock also hosted the ceremony in 2005 and 2016.

Will Smith was banned from the Oscars for 10 years following the assault. He is eligible for nomination, but he cannot attend the ceremony. He issued a video apology recently where he apologized to Rock's mother and other family members.

The Academy appears ready to move on, with director Bill Kramer stating, “We want to move forward and have an Oscars that celebrates cinema. That’s our focus right now. It’s really about moving forward. We definitely want a host. A host is very important to us. We are committed to having a host on the show this year, and we are already looking at some key partners on that."