Awards / Awards Shows

Finding someone to replace Kevin Hart as the Oscars host is turning into a tall order, and not because of offensive tweets -- the real problem is money ... or the lack thereof.

Sources connected to the award show tell TMZ ... the infamously small paycheck for hosting the Oscars has been an underlying issue for the Academy for a long time. Jimmy Kimmel said he only got $15k for his services in 2017, and we're told most potential candidates are inclined to turn down the job because of that figure.

All the scrutiny and criticism that come along with it isn't helping either ... according to our sources. As to the money, we're told the Academy doesn't like to shell out for a host because they consider it the opportunity of a lifetime.

Of course, big names have taken it. Kevin didn't only accept, he was ecstatic about it before getting ousted for homophobic tweets.

Fact is, whoever fills the job now will have leverage to demand more money -- after all the Academy's kinda behind the 8 ball.

Tim Brown's 1987 Heisman Trophy has just been auctioned off ... and the winning bid was $435,000 ... TMZ Sports has learned,

Brown won the trophy during his legendary senior year at Notre Dame -- when he caught 137 passes for 2,493 yards and 22 touchdowns.

The NFL Hall of Famer had sold the trophy in a private sale in 2017 -- and the person who bought it consigned it to Goldin Auctions in New Jersey to be auctioned off.

The identity of the new owner has not been disclosed.

Brown's Heisman appears to be the most expensive Heisman ever sold at auction -- Rashaan Salaam's 1994 trophy sold in 2017 for $399k, Charles White's 1979 trophy went for $184k in 2000 and O.J. Simpson's went for $255k in 1999.

Goldin says Brown's trophy came with a letter of authenticity from Brown who confirms it's the real deal.

Oh, and if you're wondering why Brown was allowed to sell his award -- the Heisman Trust only began making winners sign a no-sell contract in 1999.

Stephen King thinks Patton Oswalt should be the next guy the Academy looks at to host the Oscars now that Kevin Hart's out -- but Pat's punting for some young blood.

We got the comedian and self-described movie buff Sunday at LAX, where we asked what he made of the horror icon putting Pat's name up for consideration -- in the wake of Hart's homophobic tweets. SK says Patton has all the necessary tools and knows film.

He's certainly a name that's been floated since the hosting gig opened up -- and everyone in Hollywood seems to have an opinion on who should get the job -- but he defers on himself ... and nominates Billy Eichner or Tiffany Haddish instead.

Check out the clip to hear why he thinks they're perfect options. Patton stopped short of saying it's because they'd represent women and/or the LGBTQ community ... but ya gotta think that's on his mind.

BTW, he still wants the gig for himself ... someday.

Nick Cannon thinks there's a double standard in Hollywood following Kevin Hart losing his Oscars gig ... and he's putting 3 white, female comedians on blast to make his point.

The "Wild 'N Out" host isn't happy about the backlash Hart got this week over old homophobic tweets that resulted in him stepping down as host of the Academy Awards, so on Friday he dug up some old tweets by Chelsea Handler, Amy Schumer and Sarah Silverman that use similar language.

Cannon started by sharing a 2010 tweet from Handler in which she uses the homophobic f-word slur, commenting ... "Interesting, I wonder if there was any backlash here..."

Nick then posted a 2010 tweet by Silverman in which she called the new 'Bachelorette' a gay slur, and a homophobic 2012 tweet from Schumer, adding ... "I'm just saying... should we keep going???"

When another Twitter user told Cannon he should be auditing his own tweets, he responded ... "Nope!! You know I’ve been saying f**ked up s**t since twitter started! I don’t play that politically correct bulls**t! F**k politics!! Only Truth!"

Truth be told, in a 2012 tweet of his own, Nick wrote ... "If your best joke includes "gay" or "f****t" you should be kicked off Twitter this ain't the 3rd grade! #notaninsult #lackofcreativity"

So, perhaps he's justified on casting these stones.

Cannon's been a vocal supporter of Hart during this week's Oscars controversy, and it's obvious he thinks the comedian got a raw deal. As we reported, though, a lot of the backlash Kevin got was the result of him refusing to apologize initially ... but he did AFTER he stepped down as host.

Will he stay or will he go???

Dwyane Haskins says he ain't sure ... but did he just drop a massive clue??

Maybe ... 'cause the Ohio State QB -- who's out in NYC prepping for Saturday's Heisman Trophy ceremony -- told Adam Glyn ... "I'm pretty close to graduating."

Of course, most QBs facing the decision to stay in school or jump to the NFL put at least SOME weight on their degree when making the choice.

So, would Haskins finishing up his credits this year mean he's putting his name in the 2019 NFL Draft?

"I don't know yet," he says. "I gotta work it out with my parents and talk about it. I'm just enjoying the moment right now."

It wouldn't be the worst move for the redshirt sophomore ... 'cause most NFL mock draft experts have him pegged for the top half of the first round if he were to come out.

Michael Blackson's got a few interesting points about the fallout from Kevin Hart being chosen to host the Oscars, but he's certain, no matter what ... Kevin's gonna be just fine.

We got the comedian outside Boulevard3 in Hollywood Thursday night and asked about Kevin stepping down from hosting after being slammed for old homophobic tweets.

Blackson goes to bat for his buddy (they're back on good terms), telling us all black comics have said offensive things in the past -- even the legends -- and the Academy should have been well aware of that.

Blackson says the Oscars is just as at fault for this debacle, because it either offered Hart the job without looking up his past ... or ignored it. Either way, Mike feels Kev's response should have been enough to remedy the situation ... but no such luck.

The Ghanaian native also points out there was actually one perfect black comedian who never said anything wrong, and well ... look where he's at now.

Anyway, Michael's not worried about his friend ... because he says Hart's still rich and doesn't need the hosting gig.

Another reason for Mac Miller's fans to celebrate his life and music -- the late rapper just got his first ever Grammy nomination.

The Recording Academy announced Friday morning Mac Miller's "Swimming" is nominated for rap album of the year. The album's got hefty competition ... going up against Cardi B (Invasion of Privacy), Nipsey Hussle (Victory Lap), Pusha T (Daytona) and Travis Scott (Astroworld).

"Swimming" peaked at no. 3 on the Billboard charts when it was released back in August. It returned to the top 10 following his death in September.

TMZ broke the story ... Mac died from an accidental overdose.

"Swimming" got rave reviews, including from Rolling Stone which said Mac revealed "himself to be a sympathetic, even winning presence."

BTW, Mac wasn't the only artist to earn a posthumous nomination. Chris Cornell -- nominated 4 previous times -- is up for best rock performance. Chris died by suicide in May.

Count Kevin Kline among the people who was totally fine with Kevin Hart hosting the Oscars, because he thinks it's time to cut him, and all comedians, some slack for jokes from the past.

The Academy Award-winning actor was leaving Michael's restaurant in NYC Thursday when we asked what he thought about KH landing the gig. This was several hours before Hart backed out of hosting -- but KK defended him against the backlash over old, but blatantly homophobic, tweets.

The way Kline sees it, stand-up comics have been mocking all groups -- gays, blacks, Jews and more -- for decades. He admits times are changing now, and comedians are too, but he was willing to give Hart a pass on his past remarks.

As you know, Hart posted a video Thursday, claiming he had evolved since the offending tweets, but did not apologize for them. Hours later he stepped down, saying he didn't want to be a distraction -- and, at that point, he did apologize for his "insensitive words from my past."

BTW ... Kline's stance on jokes from days of old might not be that shocking considering his own "In & Out" role from 1997. Would this scene be kosher today?

Sean Penn busted out his sense of humor all over his pal Bradley Cooper ... just in time for Bradley's huge Hollywood achievement.

BC was honored with the American Cinematheque Award Thursday night at The Beverly Hilton. The star-studded dinner featured plenty of tributes from his fellow actors and collaborators, but Sean's stood out because it included a pretty funny stroll down memory lane.

Sean started off his toast by telling the crowd something felt strangely familiar about this scenario ... which led perfectly into a viral clip of Cooper -- from almost 20 years ago -- as an aspiring actor asking Penn a question on "Inside the Actors Studio."

To be fair, the clip Sean showed was slightly doctored -- in the original, he answers Cooper's question about "Hurlyburly" right away ... but still pretty hilarious.

Sean did praise Bradley and labeled him one "handsome motherf**ker."

Garth Brooks opened the 2018 Country Music Awards with a dedication to the 12 people who were shot dead last week in the horrific massacre at a country bar in California.

Garth began the evening by lovingly dedicating the award show to the dozen people who were killed at Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks during last week's College Country Night.

Garth told the audience the show would celebrate the lives of the men and women who were shot dead, and asked everyone to let music unite them in love in their enduring memory.

Kanye West is gunning for another title ... the new king of rock 'n' roll.

Sources close to West tell us his team at Def Jam submitted Kanye for "Best Rock Song" and "Best Rock Performance" for his song "Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)" with Kid Cudi for a Grammy. The song is one of 7 from the duo's "Kids See Ghosts" album.

We're told the submissions have already made it through the screening process and were sent out on the first round ballot to voters. If Kanye's submissions snag enough support in the first round, they'll be nominated and up for the awards.

He's got a point ... 'Freeee' sounds like a rock song, loaded with heavy drums and guitars with vocals from Cudi and Ty Dolla $ign.

Our sources say Kanye's also been submitted for "Producer of the Year" -- you'll remember he did 5 albums in 5 weeks -- and his albums with Pusha T (Rap Album) and Teyana Taylor (R&B Album) are up for Grammys as well.

Bottom line -- Kanye could be ... the next Mick Jagger?

The 2018 BET Hip Hop Awards turned into one big party onstage and off, with the best artists and biggest ballers turning up in South Beach ... showing off their ice, style and swag.

Some of the stars who were dripping extra hard ... award winners Lil Wayne and DJ Khaled, Gucci Mane and Keyshia Ka'Oir, Blac Chyna, T.I. and Tameka, O.T. Genasis, Fabolous ... and lots of other pairs and groups who reveled in the good times.

Also walking the red carpet at The Fillmore Miami Beach ... TMZ's Raquel Harper, in advance of her new TV show.

Camila Cabello's breakup with Fifth Harmony might be 2 years old, but it was fresh on the minds of people at The American Music Awards, who treated them like warring relatives at a wedding ... TMZ has learned.

Sources tell us three members of Fifth Harmony (current and former) attended the AMAs Tuesday night -- Camila, Lauren Jauregui and Normani. You didn't see them anywhere near each other though, and that was no accident.

We're told Camila was placed in the front row next to Taylor Swift, and the other 2 women were in totally different sections of the Microsoft Theater ... 'cause they weren't even within shouting distance of each other. Camila obviously had the best seat as she was nominated for multiple awards.

Our sources say there's been some leftover bad blood between these three in particular in the wake of Camila leaving the group in late 2016. There were conflicting accounts on how exactly her exit was handled -- Camila says she gave plenty notice, but 5H says she ghosted.

We're sure Camila's feud with her ex-group mates was the last thing on her mind -- she ended up walking away with 4 wins total ... New Artist of the Year, Collaboration of the Year, Video of the Year, and Favorite Pop/Rock Song.

Fifth Harmony wasn't nominated.

Good luck getting anywhere near Cardi B after she has a huge night at an award show -- she was rolling real DEEP as she and Offset hit the club in L.A. to celebrate her American Music Awards victories.

They rolled into Murano in West Hollywood around 1:15 AM, and there were at least a dozen people surrounding the couple. Some were bodyguards, some were just friends but the point is ... it was totally impossible to get anywhere near Cardi as they entered and left.

You could hear some disappointed fans yelling as they walked into the club.

The reason for the small army? We're guessing they're not taking any chances with scuffles after the NYC strip club incident and, of course, the infamous Nicki Minaj shoe-throwing caper.

For what it's worth ... Cardi took home 3 AMAs for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist, Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Song and Favorite Soul/R&B Song.

Congrats! From afar.

Music and fashion are all about expression, and the 2018 American Music Awards provided some great shots of celebs making statements with colorful ensembles, sparkling dresses and flashy outfits.

Some of the stars who shined extra bright Tuesday night ... Cardi B and Offset, Taylor Swift, Post Malone, Jennifer Lopez and A-Rod, G-Eazy and Halsey ... and lots of other pairs and groups who shared in the harmony.

The biggest story of the night, though, was T-Swift's political spin on her record-breaking acceptance speech.

Aretha Franklin was honored at the 2018 American Music Awards with a star-studded performance of the Queen of Soul's timeless gospel classics ... with Gladys Knight leading the way.

Gladys, a friend of the late singer, started the tribute with a beautiful rendition of "Amazing Grace" ... bringing the audience to its feet one last time at the end of the 3-hour award show.

Gladys introduced Donnie McClurkin, and he energized the room by singing "Climbing Higher Mountains."

A gospel choir came onstage for CeCe Winans' performance of "Mary Don't You Weep" ... and people were dancing in the aisles by the time Ledisi launched into "How I Got Over."

The memorial performance ended with gospel duo Mary Mary singing a traditional gospel, "Old Landmark."

Aretha died August 16 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 76.