Twitter Is Absolutely Divided Over Anthony Mackie As The CMT Music Awards Host

The 2022 CMT Music Awards faced a major roadblock ahead of the actual show. Just hours before showtime, singer Kelsea Ballerini, who was set to host alongside actor Anthony Mackie, revealed that she could not make it to the show due to a positive COVID-19 test.

"All right friends, I have some bad news and I have some good news. The bad news is that a couple days ago, I tested positive for COVID, and the CMT Awards are tonight. So unfortunately I cannot be there in person tonight, and I am devastated," Ballerini announced in an Instagram post. "The good news is I'm feeling a lot better, a lot better. And the incredible CMT family and my team have brought part of the CMT set to my house, to my little bubble, and set it up to where I can still host and perform."

"One Thing Right" singer Kane Brown, who co-hosted with Ballerini a year prior, also stepped in to serve as co-host alongside Mackie. A CMT representative told Variety that all "three of them have lots of surprises up their sleeves and fans can look forward to an epic show." But while the trio was up to the task, people had lots to say about Mackie's participation as host.

Fans thought Anthony Mackie was an interesting choice

Fans couldn't seem to make up their mind about whether or not they loved seeing the new Captain America helm the 2022 CMT Music Awards. People took to Twitter to express their varying opinions about Anthony Mackie's hosting prowess. Some loved his fresh perspective, while some were still on the fence.

"Worst CMT Award Show in history!! Anthony Mackie??? I've got 2 words....DISJOINTED DEBACLE," one fan tweeted. "I'm loving the CMAs tonight but can we not have Anthony Mackie back as a host? Please?" wrote another. But there are others who are glad to see him on stage. "Lol – @AnthonyMackie hosting the #CMTAwards is just gold. Love him!" gushed one fan. "Can we have Anthony Mackie host every year please?" tweeted another. Meanwhile, there are fans who are simply confused. "Anthony Mackie hosting the Country Music Awards wasn't on my 2022 bingo card," a fan tweeted.

Love him or not, Mackie was just glad to be there. "There's so much diversity, people from different backgrounds — males and females ... it makes sense that the show should reflect what the music culture looks like now," he told The Tennessean ahead of the show. "Now that it's Kane, we gonna put some salt and pepper in that gumbo. Get it poppin'." Mackie certainly had fans poppin' off with opinions!