Zadan, Meron to produce Oscars show

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Aug. 28 (UPI) -- Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, the creative team behind the movie musicals "Hairspray" and "Chicago," are to produce the next edition of the Oscars in Los Angeles.

The announcement was made Friday by Hawk Koch, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

This will be Zadan's and Meron's first job behind the scenes of the Academy Awards telecast, which is to take place Feb. 24.

"Craig and Neil are forward thinkers who bring a unique perspective to the Oscar show," Koch said in a statement. "Their enormous collective talent, coupled with their love of film, serves our show perfectly."

"We are very excited to collaborate with Hawk and everyone at the Academy to produce this year's Oscars," Zadan and Meron said in a joint statement. "We hope to utilize our experience in producing features, TV and theater to bring something fresh and special to this incredible awards show. When we filmed 'The Bucket List,' we made our own personal bucket list, and producing the Oscars was No. 1. It's truly a great honor."

"Craig and Neil have great talent relationships and bring an infectious energy to the production," said Academy Chief Executive Officer Dawn Hudson. "They are creative producers in the best sense of the word."