Claim: Hugh Jackman has hosted an Oscars.

The 81st Academy Awards ceremony , presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences -LRB- AMPAS -RRB- , honored the best films of 2008 and took place on February 22 , 2009 , at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood , Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. . During the ceremony , the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented Academy Awards -LRB- commonly referred to as Oscars -RRB- in 24 categories . The ceremony was televised in the United States by ABC , and was produced by Bill Condon and Laurence Mark and directed by Roger Goodman . Actor Hugh Jackman hosted the show for the first time . Two weeks earlier in a ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills , California held on February 7 , the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by host Jessica Biel .   Slumdog Millionaire won eight awards , the most of the evening , including Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle . Other winners were The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with three awards , The Dark Knight and Milk with two awards , and Departures , The Duchess , La Maison en Petits Cubes , Man on Wire , The Reader , Smile Pinki , Toyland , Vicky Cristina Barcelona , and WALL-E with one . The telecast garnered almost 37 million viewers in the United States .