Adam Shankman Gets the Oscars

If you thought last year's Academy Awards telecast wasn't gay enough, next year's ceremony holds promise. Gay film director Adam Shankman has been announced as a coproducer of the 82nd Academy Awards telecast. The director of such hit films as Hairspray and Bringing Down the House is set to coproduce the highly anticipated film awards program with former Twentieth Century Fox CEO Bill Mechanic for a March 7 live broadcast.

In a statement released today by Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, Shankman says, "The last time I was on the show was as a dancer, and to come back as a producer is an unbelievable honor."

It remains to be seen if Shankman, who is also a choreographer and a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, will be able to top 2009's bizarro "The Musical Is Back," a tribute to movie musicals that teamed Hugh Jackman, Beyonce, and the casts of High School Musical and Mamma Mia!

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