As the 2025 Tony Awards gets closer, we know you are looking up all things hosts. We got you covered! Here is a comprehensive hub for all your frequently asked questions about Tony Awards hosts before this year’s emcee, Cynthia Erivo, starts the show.
Stats: Who Has Hosted the Most Times?
Some Tony Awards hosts have been so iconic, they have done it more than once!
Angela Lansbury has hosted or cohosted more Tony telecasts than any other individual, with five telecasts (1968, 1971, 1987, 1988, and 1989).
Following that, with four times each, are Neil Patrick Harris (2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013) and Hugh Jackman (2003, 2004, 2005, and 2014).
People to host three times are Bud Collyer, who was the first to host three consecutive years (1957–1959), Robert Preston (1967, 1974, and 1984), Julie Andrews (1970, 1984, and 1991), Nathan Lane (1996, 1997, and 2001), and Ariana DeBose, who was just added to the list last year (2022, 2023, and 2024).
The following people have hosted the Tony Awards twice:
Brock Pemberton (1947 and 1949)
James Sauter (1951 and 1954)
Helen Hayes (1952 and 1955)
Peter Usinitov (1968 and 1972)
Bernadette Peters (1975 and 2002)
Henry Fonda (1972 and 1979)
Richard Burton (1976 and 1983)
Rosie O’Donnell (1997 and 1998)
Glenn Close (1992 and 1995)
Gregory Hines (1995 and 2002)
James Corden (2016 and 2019)
Take A Look: Watch Iconic Tony Awards Opening Numbers of the Past
Has a Tony Awards Host Ever Won a Tony on the Night They Hosted?
Surprisingly enough, quite a few performers won a Tony Award while they were hosting or cohosting.
The first was Helen Hayes, who hosted in 1958 and won the Tony Award for best actress in a play for her performance in Time Remembered that very same night. Robert Preston did the same when he hosted the Tonys in 1967 and won the award for best actor in a musical for his performance in I Do! I Do! Four-time host Hugh Jackman followed suit in 2004, when he won best actor in a musical for his performance in The Boy From Oz.
This actually happened to Glenn Close two separate times — once when she hosted in 1992 and won best actress in a play for her performance in Death and the Maiden, and another time in 1995, when she was awarded best actress in a musical for her incredible performance in Sunset Boulevard, a musical that is one of the current nominees for best revival of a musical this Tony season.
Nathan Lane was celebrated for a similar feat, when he hosted the 1996 Tony Awards and won in the best actor in a musical category for his performance in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and again in 2001 for his titular performance in The Producers, when he won in the same category while hosting.
Additionally, Richard Burton and Mary Tyler Moore were awarded with Special Awards when they cohosted the Tony Awards in 1980.
Award-Winning Award Show Hosts
Both Hugh Jackman and Neil Patrick Harris have won Primetime Emmys for hosting the Tony Awards.
Jackman won for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program in 2005 for the 58th Tony Awards. Meanwhile, Harris has won four Primetime Emmys in the category of Outstanding Special Class Program for hosting the Tonys, one for each of the times he has hosted the awards (2010, 2012, 2013, and 2014).
Have Any EGOT Winners Hosted the Tony Awards?
As of 2025, three women who are EGOT winners have hosted the Tony Awards.
Helen Hayes hosted the 12th Tony Awards in 1958, and she completed her EGOT in 1977 when she won a Grammy at 78 years old.
Liza Minnelli hosted the 47th Tony Awards in 1993, and she completed her EGOT in 1990 with a Grammy Legend award at 44 years old.
Whoopi Goldberg hosted the 62nd Tony Awards in 2008, and she completed her EGOT in 2002, when she won an Emmy and a Tony in the same year at 46 years old.
The Tonys have had some legendary hosts, and we cannot wait to see Cynthia Erivo join the roster. The 78th Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall airs live Sunday, June 8, at 8 p.m. ET. The broadcast will be available on CBS and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+).
Check out our What We Know About the 2025 Tony Awards article to learn more about the Tonys!