LOS ANGELES —﻿Out with the old, in with the young: James Franco and Anne Hathaway will co-host the 83rd Academy Awards in February, an apparent bid to attract younger viewers to the telecast.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made the announcement on Monday morning, with the producers of this year’s show, Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer, noting in a joint statement that the two actors “personify the next generation of Hollywood icons – fresh, exciting and multi-talented.”

Making the choice more unusual, both Mr. Franco and Ms. Hathaway are part of this year’s Oscar race. Mr. Franco has a very good shot at a best actor nomination for his stomach-churning turn in “127 Hours” as a hiker who severs his own arm after an accident. Ms. Hathaway is more of a longshot in the best actress race but still part of the conversation for playing an early-onset Parkinson’s victim in “Love and Other Drugs.”

Last year, Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin co-hosted the ceremony ; more than 41 million people tuned in, the best showing since 2005.