Fans Want to Welcome Neil Patrick Harris Back as Tony Host

With the 2010 Tony Awards right around the corner, and a host yet to be announced, we wondered which veteran emcee you’d like to see take the Radio City stage on June 13. Well, suit up, Neil Patrick Harris! After his successful turn as Tony host last year, fans who voted in Broadway.com's weekend poll want an encore performance from the Broadway vet and How I Met Your Mother star. Harris, who's busy preparing his directorial debut in the Hollywood Bowl's summer concerts of Rent, earned the top spot with a healthy 31% percent of votes.

Tony winner Hugh Jackman, who starred in A Steady Rain earlier this season and hosted the awards three consecutive years from 2003-2005, was runner-up with 13% of the votes. Fans also wouldn't mind a ‘view’ of 2008 host Whoopi Goldberg (a winner herself for producing Thoroughly Modern Millie) who landed in third with 11% of votes.

Current Addams Family star Nathan Lane (who won  his second Best Actor Tony the night he hosted in 2001) came in fourth place with 8%. Two legendary Broadway leading ladies, Julie Andrews and Bernadette Peters, rounded out the top five with 7% each. Full poll results are below.

1. Neil Patrick Harris – 31%
2. Hugh Jackman – 13%
3. Whoopi Goldberg – 11%
4. Nathan Lane – 8%
5. Julie Andrews – 7%
6. Bernadette Peters – 7%
7. Rosie O’Donnell – 6%
8. Angela Lansbury – 5%
9. Liza Minnelli – 3%
10. Matthew Broderick – 1%
Less than 1%: Glenn Close, Florence Henderson, Kathleen Turner, Shirley MacLaine, Mary Tyler Moore

Thanks for voting, and don’t forget to check out our complete Tony coverage!