LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Jimmy Kimmel will return to host the 96th Academy Awards, marking his fourth turn leading the ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Wednesday.
Kimmel also hosted the ceremony earlier this year, and he hosted in 2017 and 2018.
He will join Whoopi Goldberg and Jack Lemmon as four-time Oscar hosts, and he'll be one behind Johnny Carson, who hosted five of the events.
Billy Crystal hosted the ceremony nine times, but Bob Hope is the all- time leader with 19 shows as host, although the shared hosting duties in five of those outings.
"I always dreamed of hosting the Oscars exactly four times," Kimmel joked in a statement released by the Academy.
Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement they are "thrilled" to have Kimmel returning as host and Molly McNearney returning to serve as an executive producer for the show.
"They share our love of movies and our commitment to producing a dynamic and entertaining show for our global audience," Kramer and Yang said. "We are deeply grateful to Jimmy, Molly and their teams for their incredible creativity and partnership and for going on this ride with us again."
The Academy Awards ceremony is scheduled for March 10 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and broadcast on ABC, the same network that airs Kimmel's late-night talk show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live." McNearney is an executive producer and co-head writer for "Jimmy Kimmel Live."
Oscar nominations will be announced Jan. 23.