London, Nov 10 (IANS): Actor Eddie Murphy, who was set to host the 84th Oscar awards ceremony at the Kodak Theatre in Beverly Hills Feb 26 next year, has stepped down as the host.

Murphy departed in support of Brett Ratner, his "Tower Heist" director, who resigned from the post of co-producer of the Oscars, reports contactmusic.com.

Ratner resigned Tuesday over a homophobic slur he used during a question-and-answer session with fans on Nov 4 and his friend Murphy stepped down as host Wednesday.

Movie mogul Brian Grazer will replace Ratner as the co-producer of the 84th annual Oscars but it still isn't clear who will host the gala event.

Announcing this, Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences president Tom Sherak said: "Brian Grazer is a renowned filmmaker who over the past 25 years has produced a diverse and extraordinary body of work. He will certainly bring his tremendous talent, creativity and relationships to the Oscars."

And Grazer said: "It's very gratifying to be part of a show that honours excellence in the medium to which I have devoted so much of my career."