Hart dropped out of the annual award show in December after homophobic tweets he had shared years in the past re-emerged. Hart’s announcement that he was stepping down – in which he apologised and said he didn’t want to be a distraction at the ceremony – came days after he was named the host of the Academy Awards, which take place on February 24.

He said Wednesday that he does not have an issue with the Academy.

“The offer was made, it was received, I was excited, things happened, it didn’t work out the way that it should’ve,” Hart said. “Right now, from a time perspective, I don’t have the time. You’re talking about two weeks I’d have to prepare.”

Last Friday, Hart shared his frustration with the situation during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

“I’m a little upset because I know who I am. I know I don’t have a homophobic bone in my body,” the comedian told host Ellen DeGeneres. “I know that I’ve addressed it. I know that I’ve apologised. I know that within my apologies I’ve taken 10 years to put my apology to work.”

DeGeneres urged him to reconsider his decision to step down and said the Academy told her they’d like to see Hart return as host.

Hart said toward the end of the episode that he planned on “evaluating” his conversation with DeGeneres.

The 39-year-old Hart repeatedly reiterated to Strahan on Wednesday that he is “over” talking about his old tweets and said there would be “no more conversation about it.”

“I’m over that. I’m over the moment, and I’m about today,” Hart said. “So if it’s accepted, great, and if it’s not, it’s nothing I can control.”