Kenan Thompson To Host 2021 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards; Justin Bieber, ‘Stranger Things’, Ariana Grande Lead Nominees

Denise Petski
·5 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Saturday Night Live‘s Kenan Thompson has been tapped to host the 2021 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, which air live Saturday, March 13 at 7:30 PM ET/PT.

With Thompson at the helm, kids and families will celebrate their favorite stars across the worlds of film, television, music, sports and more.

More from Deadline

For the first time ever, Nickelodeon’s Orange Blimp will leave the KCA venue and take fans on a wild ride around the world and beyond. Filled with slime and messy stunts, viewers will travel to outer space, Bikini Bottom and into celebrities’ homes using XR technology. This year’s show will also feature live and interactive fan walls that bring celebrities and families at home to the main stage; second screen live voting all night long and a KCA award presented by one lucky family chosen during the show.

“Nickelodeon has been part of my life and my family forever and I can’t wait to host this year’s Kids’ Choice Awards,” said Thompson, a former Nick Kids’ Choice Award winner himself. “Am I worried about getting slimed? Naaaah. It’s going to come fast and cold, but it’s not my first rodeo–you know what I’m saying? So, bring on the slime and let’s do this!”

Leading with most nominations are Justin Bieber with five; Stranger Things with four; and Ariana Grande, The Croods: A New Age, Henry Danger, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Soul, Trolls World Tour and Wonder Woman 1984, all tied with three nominations each.

Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards 2021 will simulcast across Nickelodeon, TeenNick, Nicktoons and the Nick Jr. channel.

Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards 2021 is produced by Nickelodeon Productions and overseen by Rob Bagshaw, Executive Vice President, Unscripted Content. Michael Dempsey serves as executive producer, with Amy Johnson and Magda Liolis serving as co-executive producers. Nickelodeon’s Unscripted Content executives Rob Bagshaw and Paul J Medford also serve as executive producers. The ceremony is directed by Glenn Weiss.

Complete list of nominations follows below.

TELEVISION:

FAVORITE KIDS TV SHOW
Alexa & Katie
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Danger Force
Henry Danger
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series
Raven’s Home

FAVORITE FAMILY TV SHOW
black-ish
Cobra Kai
Fuller House
The Mandalorian
Stranger Things
Young Sheldon

FAVORITE REALITY SHOW
America’s Got Talent
American Idol
American Ninja Warrior Junior
LEGO Masters
The Masked Singer
The Voice

FAVORITE ANIMATED SERIES
Alvinnn!!! and the Chipmunks
The Boss Baby: Back in Business
LEGO Jurassic World: Legend of Isla Nublar
The Loud House
SpongeBob SquarePants
Teen Titans Go!

FAVORITE FEMALE TV STAR
Ella Anderson (Piper Hart, Henry Danger)
Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven, Stranger Things)
Candace Cameron Bure (D.J. Tanner-Fuller, Fuller House)
Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge, Riverdale)
Raven-Symoné (Raven Baxter, Raven’s Home)
Sofia Wylie (Gina, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series)

FAVORITE MALE TV STAR
Iain Armitage (Sheldon Cooper, Young Sheldon)
Joshua Bassett (Ricky, High School Musical: The Musical Series)
Dylan Gilmer (Young Dylan, Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan)
Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair, Stranger Things)
Jace Norman (Henry Hart/Kid Danger, Henry Danger and Danger Force)
Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler, Stranger Things)

FILM:

FAVORITE MOVIE
Dolittle
Hamilton
Hubie Halloween
Mulan
Sonic the Hedgehog
Wonder Woman 1984

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTRESS
Millie Bobby Brown (Enola Holmes, Enola Holmes)
Gal Gadot (Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman 1984)
Anne Hathaway (Grand High Witch, The Witches)
Vanessa Hudgens (Princesses, The Princess Switch: Switched Again)
Yifei Liu (Mulan, Mulan)
Melissa McCarthy (Carol Peters, Superintelligence)

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTOR
Jim Carrey (Dr. Robotnik, Sonic the Hedgehog)
Robert Downey Jr. (Dr. John Dolittle, Dolittle)
Will Ferrell (Lars Erickssong, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga)
Lin-Manuel Miranda (Alexander Hamilton, Hamilton)
Chris Pine (Steve Trevor, Wonder Woman 1984)
Adam Sandler (Hubie Dubois, Hubie Halloween)

FAVORITE ANIMATED MOVIE
Onward
The Croods: A New Age
Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe
Trolls World Tour
Scoob!
Soul

FAVORITE VOICE FROM AN ANIMATED MOVIE
Tina Fey (22, Soul)
Jamie Foxx (Joe Gardner, Soul)
Anna Kendrick (Poppy, Trolls World Tour)
Chris Pratt (Barley Lightfoot, Onward)
Ryan Reynolds (Guy, The Croods: A New Age)
Emma Stone (Eep, The Croods: A New Age)
Justin Timberlake (Branch, Trolls World Tour)

MUSIC:

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST
Beyoncé
Billie Eilish
Selena Gomez
Ariana Grande
Katy Perry
Taylor Swift

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST
Justin Bieber
Drake
Post Malone
Shawn Mendes
Harry Styles
The Weeknd

FAVORITE MUSIC GROUP
Black Eyed Peas
BLACKPINK
BTS
Jonas Brothers
Maroon 5
OneRepublic

FAVORITE MUSIC COLLABORATION
“Be Kind” – Marshmello & Halsey
“Holy” – Justin Bieber ft. Chance the Rapper
“Ice Cream” – BLACKPINK & Selena Gomez
“Lonely” – Justin Bieber & benny blanco
“Rain on Me” – Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande
“Stuck with U” – Ariana Grande & Justin Bieber

FAVORITE SONG
“Blinding Lights” The Weeknd
“Cardigan” by Taylor Swift
“Dynamite” by BTS
“Toosie Slide” by Drake
“Wonder” by Shawn Mendes
“Yummy” by Justin Bieber

FAVORITE GLOBAL MUSIC STAR
BTS (Asia)
Savannah Clarke (Australia)
David Guetta (Europe)
Master KG (Africa)
Taylor Swift (North America)
Sebastián Yatra (Latin America)

OTHER CATEGORIES:

FAVORITE FEMALE SOCIAL STAR
Emma Chamberlain
Charli D’Amelio
GamerGirl
Addison Rae
JoJo Siwa
Maddie Ziegler

FAVORITE MALE SOCIAL STAR
James Charles
Jason Derulo
David Dobrik
MrBeast
Ninja
Ryan’s World

FAVORITE FEMALE SPORTS STAR
Simone Biles
Alex Morgan
Naomi Osaka
Candace Parker
Megan Rapinoe
Serena Williams

FAVORITE MALE SPORTS STAR
Tom Brady
Stephen Curry
LeBron James
Patrick Mahomes
Lionel Messi
Russell Wilson

FAVORITE VIDEO GAME
Among Us
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Fortnite
Minecraft
Pokémon GO
Roblox

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.