Condon and Mark To Produce and Write 81st Annual Oscars

Variety is reporting that the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences has tapped Laurence Mark and writer/director Bill Condon to produce and write the 81st Annual Academy Award Ceremony.

Mark told Daily Variety, "We respect the tradition of the Oscars and we're happy to uphold those traditions. But it might be a kick to pay attention to the format and vary it -- to do both. The show should be classy and fun."

Variety reports, "This year's Oscarcast hit an all-time ratings low, with an average audience for the three-plus hours of 32 million U.S. viewers (down from 40.2 million in 2007). This year reached an 18.7 household rating/29 share."

The challenge facing both Mark and Condon to make the awards ceremony more entertaining. This, however, does not mean that because of their background in musicals it will necessarily be more music heavy and similar to the Tony Awards. While not listed as a priority, the producers hope this will mean a heavier volume of viewers.

Condon and Mark had previously teamed up on the film adaptation of Dreamgirls. Mark has also worked on films such as Jerry Maguire and the upcoming Julie and Julia.

Condon won the Oscar for writing Gods and Monsters and was nominated for his Chicago adaptation.

Nominations will be announced Jan. 22 with the ceremony being broadcast on ABC Feb 22nd.