It’s time to break out the popcorn — the golden popcorn, that is. After months of more formal award shows, the newly rebranded MTV Movie & TV Awards is making its return to bring the fun and celebrate the best in film and television Sunday at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Ready to bring his comedic chops to this year’s award show is Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates funnyman Adam DeVine, who will emcee the ceremony.
“I’m so excited to host the ‘MTV Movie & TV Awards,'” said DeVine of his hosting gig. “I have dreamed about it since I was a teenager. It was usually a dry dream, but I would be remiss if I didn’t admit that sometimes it was wet.”
The winners for the 26th annual ceremony are determined through fan voting conducted online. Taking the lead in this year’s lineup of nominees is the buzzed-about film Get Out, earning six nominations that include movie of the year and next generation award for the film’s star, Daniel Kaluuya. The box-office hit Beauty and the Beast follows closely behind with five nominations, including a best actor in a movie nomination for Emma Watson. Fresh from its Oscar win is Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight, which scored three nominations that include one of the show’s brand-new categories, best American story. Hidden Figures and Logan also each earned three noms.
For the first time ever, the awards show will recognize television series and stars alongside feature films.
Netflix’s breakout series Stranger Things snagged four nominations, two of which are for breakout star Millie Bobby Brown. HBO’s famous medieval world Game of Thrones follows with three nominations, including the show of the year award. FX’s Atlanta and NBC’s This is Us earned three nods, respectively.
New to this year’s categories are unconventional match-ups between films and television shows. Such unorthodox competitions include: Donald Glover (Atlanta) vs. Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin) for best actor in a TV show and Ashton Sanders & Jharrel Jerome (Moonlight) vs. Taraji P. Henson & Terrance Howard (Empire) for best kiss.
MTV is also revamping its traditional categories. Its best actor and best actress categories are now non-gendered as best actor. Also altered is the best fight category, which has morphed into best fight the system, to reflect the audience’s awareness and activism around social issues. The network also introduced best host, best reality competition, tearjerker, next generation, trending and best musical moment to its lineup of categories.
Guests and viewers will be treated to musical performances from Big Sean and Noah Cyrus, both of whom will perform their new singles for the first time on TV. It was also announced that J Balvin, Pitbull and Camila Cabello will make their debut performance of their single “Hey Ma,” which was featured as the lead single from the Fate of the Furious soundtrack. Their performance will celebrate the successful Fast and Furious franchise, which is slated to receive this year’s generation award.
Fast and Furious will be the first franchise to win the generation award. Vin Diesel will accept the honor alongside his co-stars Tyrese Gibson, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster.
Tom Holland and Zendaya will be on hand to introduce an exclusive clip of their new film, Spider-Man: Homecoming, while New Line Cinema will bring a sneak peek of the film adaptation of Stephen King’s It. Young stars from the film whom will present the preview include: Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Wyatt Oleff, Chosen Jacobs and Jack Dylan Grazer. Mark Wahlberg will present an exclusive sneak peek at Transformers: The Last Knight.
Hours before the show’s broadcast, the network will host its inaugural MTV Movie & TV Awards Festival. Used as a way to give fans an opportunity to join the Young Hollywood party, MTV is transforming the grounds outside the Shrine Auditorium into a party scene for fans to enjoy before the show begins.
“The MTV Movie & TV Awards is about celebrating the stories and characters that resonate with young people regardless of screen,” said Chris McCarthy, president of MTV. “Our full day festival is about bringing that content to life and feeding the audiences passion for great content and music.”
The free event will treat guests to exclusive access to celebrity arrivals, red carpet interviews and the opportunity to watch sneak peeks from buzzed-about films and TV shows. The festival will feature performances by Zara Larsson, All Time Low and Bea Miller. Hosted by Terrence J and MTV news correspondent Gaby Wilson, the festival will broadcast live on MTV.com from 2-5 p.m.
Presenters of the night include John Cena, Baywatch’s Alexandra Daddario, Cara Delevingne, Ansel Elgort, Goldie Hawn, Mark Wahlberg, Snoop Dogg, Zac Efron, Zendaya, Amy Schumer, Gal Gadot, Chrissy Metz, the cast of 13 Reasons Why, Hailee Steinfeld and more.
The MTV Movie & TV Awards will air live from Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium on Sunday, May 7, at 8 p.m. ET.
