Neil Patrick Harris To Host The Oscars

Neil Patrick Harris has been tapped to host next year's Academy Awards.

Harris, 41, best known as Barney Stinson on the long-running CBS series, has also hosted TV's Emmy Awards. He has won three Emmys for hosting theater's Tony Awards. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences is eager to draw a greater number of younger viewers to the TV broadcast of the 87th Oscars. The ceremony will be shown live to more than 200 countries from Los Angeles on Feb. 22 on the ABC television network, owned by Walt Disney Co. Talk show host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres emceed the ceremony this year, and drew the highest Oscars telecast audience in 14 years with 43.7 million tuning in. DeGeneres was also successful drawing a strong rating among the 18-49 demographic coveted most by advertisers.

Harris won a Tony Award this year for his lead performance in Hedwig & The Angry Inch.