因为主持人临时退出，将于2月24日举行的第91届奥斯卡颁奖典礼将没有主持人！灵机一动的评委会想到了拯救地球的复仇者们，这些超级英雄能拯救奥斯卡奖电视直播一年比一年惨淡的收视率吗？

 《复仇者联盟3：无限战争》剧照 

The Avengers saved the planet from an alien invasion and an artificial intelligence hellbent on human extinction. (They failed to save us from Thanos, but we don’t need to talk about that.) Their next assignment: saving the Academy Awards.

复仇者联盟拯救地球免受外星人入侵，让人类免于被机器人灭绝的命运。（尽管他们没能让人类脱离灭霸的魔掌，但是这不是今天的重点）。复仇者们的下一个任务是：给奥斯卡颁奖礼救场。

hellbent['helbent]: adj. 拼命的；坚决的

The Oscars (Feb. 24) were left without a host last month when comedian Kevin Hart stepped down from the gig following the widespread backlash to his history of making homophobic comments. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has understandably struggled to find a replacement for what was a thankless job even before the Hart controversy and is now perhaps among the least-coveted roles in Hollywood history. It now appears that the Academy has given up on the idea of a host entirely.

将于2月24日举行的奥斯卡颁奖礼主持人原定由喜剧演员凯文·哈特担任，但哈特在上个月被曝出曾发表厌恶同性恋的评论而遭到广泛的抵制，从而退出了奥斯卡奖主持工作。这样一来，奥斯卡颁奖礼就没有主持人了。奥斯卡奖主持是个吃力不讨好的活儿，在发生哈特事件之前，美国电影艺术与科学学院找个主持人本来就不容易，如今恐怕成了好莱坞有史以来最讨人嫌的工作了。现在看来，学院已经完全放弃了找主持人的想法。

backlash['bæklæʃ]: n. 强烈抵制

homophobic[,hɔmə'fəubik]: adj. 害怕同性恋的

covet['kʌvət]: vt. 垂涎；觊觎

 Cast member Kevin Hart poses at the premiere for "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" in Los Angeles, California, December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni 

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Academy is instead scrambling to “reunite” cast members of Marvel’s Avengers movies as a rotating team of quasi-hosts to introduce segments and hold the telecast together. It’s unclear which Avengers specifically will take part in the show, but the Academy wants “appearances by as many big-name cast members” as possible, the Hollywood Reporter said.

据《好莱坞记者报》报道，学院正努力让漫威电影中的复联演员“重聚”，让他们轮流做客串主持，每个人负责一部分，让现场直播得以继续。哪位复仇者会参与节目主持还不清楚，但据《好莱坞记者报》称，学院希望能让“尽可能多的复联大腕”亮相。

telecast['tɛlɪkæst]: n. 电视广播

In the 90-year history of the Oscars, the telecast has been held without a host only five times. The last time the Oscars lacked a host was 1989, when a throng of “star participants” ushered the ceremony, presenting clips and awards “like a relay race from star to star,” Allan Carr, the show’s producer, told the Chicago Tribune that year. That telecast was widely panned by critics and viewers alike.

在奥斯卡奖90年的历史中，电视直播节目没有主持人的情况只出现过五次。上一次没有主持人是在1989年，那一年节目制作人艾伦·卡尔告诉《芝加哥论坛报》说，当时由一群明星嘉宾一起展示视频短片和颁发奖项，“就和接力赛一样”。那次电视直播遭到了评论界人士和观众的广泛抨击。

throng[θrɔŋ]: n. 人群；众多

pan[pæn]: vt. [非正式用语]严厉地批评

But the Academy has to try something. The Avengers assemblage makes sense on several levels: The Oscars are broadcast on the Disney-owned network ABC, which means there’s some serious corporate synergy with the superhero stars, who are also employed by Disney via Marvel. These are some of the industry’s biggest stars: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Chadwick Boseman, and other red carpet mainstays.

但是学院总得做点什么来挽回局面。从几个方面来讲，让复仇者们做主持还是比较靠谱的。第一，奥斯卡颁奖礼是通过迪士尼旗下的ABC电视台播出的，这意味着电视台和这些超级英雄明星都有正式的合作关系，因为英雄们都受雇于迪士尼旗下的漫威影业。其次，这些英雄当中就有好几个娱乐圈的大腕：小罗伯特·唐尼、克里斯·海姆斯沃斯、斯嘉丽·约翰逊、查德维克·博斯曼，还有其他红毯常客。

synergy['sɪnɚdʒi]: n. 协同

 2018年4月24日消息，美国洛杉矶，电影《复仇者联盟3：无限战争》（Avengers: Infinity War）首映，小罗伯特·唐尼（Robert Downey Jr.）现身宣传。 

As hosts, the Avengers are also unlikely to drum up any further controversy (unless you consider failing humanity by letting an intergalactic tyrant wipe out half of known civilization to be controversial). And, who knows, maybe the stunt will help boost the telecast’s ratings, which have been in complete free-fall over the last five years. Probably not. But maybe.

作为主持人，复仇者们不太可能再度引发争议（除非你认为他们没能保护好人类，让外星球的暴君毁灭一半生命会引发争议）。而且，没准这一噱头还能刺激电视直播节目的收视率，该收视率在过去五年直线下降。不过也许不能。但至少有这个可能。

drum up: 纠集；鼓动

ratings: n. 收视率

Framing the evening as a “reunion” for the Marvel superheroes is far less believable, however. Avengers: Infinity War came out only last year. Avengers: Endgame comes out in April. Saying the Oscars will “reunite” the Avengers is like saying Maroon 5 is going on a reunion tour. They’re one of the most popular bands in the world, and they’re about to play the Super Bowl halftime show!

不过，将这个奥斯卡之夜视为漫威超级英雄的“重聚盛会”却是无稽之谈。《复仇者联盟3：无限战争》去年才刚上映。《复仇者联盟4：终局之战》四月又将登上大荧幕。说奥斯卡颁奖礼让复仇者们“重聚”，就好比说魔力红乐队重聚办巡演。魔力红是世界上最受欢迎的乐队之一，而且他们很快就要在超级碗中场秀上演出！

Whether the ratings improve or not, one thing the Academy can control completely is which films are in the running. The Oscars will be a lot easier to take seriously if the Academy nominates the films that reflect how wonderful 2018 was for cinema, instead of, you know, those other ones.

不管此次电视直播收视率会不会上升，学院可以完全掌控的一件事就是决定哪些电影可以角逐奥斯卡奖。如果学院提名的电影是2018年口碑最好的电影，而不是那些无人问津的电影，那么奥斯卡颁奖礼要获得人们的重视将会容易得多。