UPDATE: Gervais confirmed his return in a tweet, writing, "It's gonna be biblical."
_____
PREVIOUSLY: Brace yourself, Hollywood: Ricky Gervais is officially returning to host the Golden Globes for a third time.
The comedian and creator of "The Office" and "Extras" created an uproar with his star-baiting monologue and set piece jokes at the 2011 awards show, but the buzz he created was enough to earn him another invite from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The group voted on Wednesday over whether to bring him back, Variety reports, with the majority giving the British star the thumbs up.
Known for his sarcasm and wit, Gervais was unrelenting in his mockery, delighting in taking on stars like as Robert Downey Jr., John Travolta, Tom Cruise and Charlie Sheen.
"This year, I went about right. If anyone was offended, then I don't care," he said afterward. And then, he took to his blog to assert that no feelings were hurt, anyway.
"All the same conspiracy theories as last year too... 'So and so was offended' ... 'hasn't been invited back yet'... exactly the same as last time. 'Paul McCartney was furious'... no he wasn't. And nor was Tim Allen and Tom Hanks," he wrote. "I was drinking with them after. Why do people have to embellish? They're allowed to say they hated it. They're allowed to say they didn't find it funny, that it was tasteless, over the top, or whatever. But why do they speculate and make stuff up?"
Gervais has been tweeting articles and sly hints about his potential return, sending a link to a New York Post report earlier in the month that said the HFPA was asking him back.
After last year's awards, HFPA President Philip Berk seemed less than pleased with his host. "He definitely crossed the line. And some of the things were totally unacceptable," he said. "But that's Ricky... I had absolutely no idea what Ricky was going to say so anything I heard was heard was the same time you heard it. When you hire Ricky Gervais, you expect the unexpected."
As for what to expect this year? Gervais, who had earlier joked that he offered to host both the Oscars and the Golden Globes when Eddie Murphy pulled out of the Academy Awards, tweeted Wednesday afternoon, "Just told Billy Crystal he'd better not use any of my holocaust or pedophile material at The Oscars. He agreed (true)."
Then, a tweet that read, "Ha ha Hello. Welcome to my world," with a picture of himself standing in front of rising flames.
Good luck, Hollywood.