Jackman Declines Offer to Host Oscars for Third Year

Hugh Jackman, who was most recently seen on Broadway opposite Daniel Craig in A STEAD RAIN, has declined the opportunity to host the Oscar telecast for a third straight year, deadline.com reports. Last year, Jackman reportedly had to turn down the prestigious gig to prep for his role in the movie The Real Steel. He also was vary of hosting the show two consecutive years Jackman will be unable to host the 2011 ceremony, as he will be preoccupied with X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Filming begins in late February/early March of 2011.

Despite initial doubts, Jackman's stint as Oscar host for the 2009 ceremony earned him considerable praise under producer Laurence Mark and executive producer Bill Condon. 

Hugh Jackman won a 2004 Tony Award, Drama Desk, Drama League, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World awards for Best Actor in a musical for his portrayal of the 1970s singer-songwriter Peter Allen in The Boy From Oz. Previous theater credits include Carousel at Carnegie Hall, Oklahoma! at the National Theater in London (Olivier Award nomination), Sunset Boulevard (MO Award - Australia's Tony Award) and Disney's Beauty and the Beast (MO Award nomination). From 2003 through 2005 he hosted the Tony Awards, winning a 2004 Emmy for Outstanding Individual Performer in a Variety, Musical or Comedy program. Mr. Jackman made his first major U.S. film appearance as Wolverine in the first installment of the X-Men franchise, a role he reprised in the enormously successful X2 and 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand. Most recently, he reprised his role in X-Men Origins: Wolverine which serves as a prequel to the popular series and grossed an outstanding $85 million domestically in its first weekend of release in May 2009. On February 22, 2009, Jackman took on the prestigious role of Oscar host as he fronted the 81st Annual Academy Awards.