Thank goodness for Funny or Die. The comedy website teamed up with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences this year to create the funniest trailer we've seen for the Oscars as far back as we can remember.
While we aren't so sure Josh Duhamel and Megan Fox are actually the two people the Academy would turn to in a time of need, they certainly sell their roles here. It's their task to go find "The Host" -- aka Billy Crystal -- and convince him to host this year's Oscars. Along the way they get ordered around by William Fichtner, receive some clues from Vinnie Jones and get a ride in a barge from Robin Williams. Because why not.
The joy of this trailer is that it's actually really funny and clever, and more epic in scale than previous Oscar commercials. If you remember, last year's Anne Hathaway and James Franco ads featured them working out and going through a training course to prepare for their hosting duties.
We'd argue that this trailer appeals more to the Academy's much sought after younger demographic than the hiring of Hathaway and Franco did. Maybe the combination of a smart marketing campaign -- thank you again, Funny or Die -- and the return of Crystal as an Oscar host can help raise the viewership numbers that dropped last year.