The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ attempt to woo a younger audience with actors Anne Hathaway and James Franco as hosts this year was seen as a flop, Clemens says and, by choosing Murphy, show producers are going back to the tried-and-true — a star comedian. Movie fans CBS News spoke to gave the choice a thumbs-up. “I think he’s going to be a great host, he’s very funny, he’s witty, got good banter,” said one. “I’ve been waiting for this guy to host the Oscars for a long time, ’cause he’s good on his feet, you know, good comedian, and they need somebody, somebody good like that,” said another. “He’s perfect, perfect for adults, he’s for children, he’s for everybody. He’s good,’ said a third. Although Murphy was an Oscar nominee in 2007 for “Dreamgirls,” it’s been years since he’s had a big hit at the box office. But Variety’s Brian Lowry pointed out that, “Eddie Murphy is a multi-talented star, but if you look at his career over the last decade, really, this century, the most successful role he’s had has been as the animated donkey in Shrek.” Now, though, Murphy has a chance to re-ignite his career. Said Entertainment Weekly’s Shaw, “Is Eddie Murphy going to be great? Does he have all the credentials? Absolutely. Can he pull off the show? We’ll see.” When he won a Golden Globe for “Dreamgirls,” Murphy told CBS News he was ready to take on anything, saying, “I like to do all kinds of different things. I started really young, and I’ve been in the movie business a long time. But I’m still a relatively young man, so I’m going to try to do different stuff, so when I look back, I can look back and say, ‘Wow, I did everything!”‘ Perhaps not coincidentally, Clemens notes, Murphy has a film coming out this year directed by Brett Ratner — one of the Oscar telecast’s producers. It’s a comedy called “Tower Heist.”