A special Ozzy Osbourne tribute is being planned for this year’s MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).
Van Toffler, who spent nearly three decades at MTV, recently inked a deal between his production and distribution company Gunpowder and Sky and MTV, and he has a key role in the upcoming ceremony on September 7.
The music legend’s family are MTV legends thanks to their hit reality series The Osbournes – which aired between 2002 and 2005 – and in the wake of the Black Sabbath frontman’s passing on Tuesday (22.07.25), at the age of 76, they want to give him a fitting farewell.
Toffler told Variety: “I have no doubt we will spend the next month figuring out the proper tribute and send off to Ozzy on the Video Music Awards, because he was such a large figure in music history, and the family [had] such an impact on MTV history, and we need to acknowledge that.”
The former MTV boss helped launch the infamous reality show, years before the likes of Real Housewives or Keeping Up with the Kardashians had fans hooked.
Toffler told the outlet: “We were deep in the throes of reality television in the early 2000s but I don’t think we’d ever had someone over 50 years old featured on any show on MTV in its history.
“We were looking to launch Cribs, and we shot a bit with the Osbournes, and we all kind of looked at each other and just felt there is some wonderful, serendipitous chaos and insanity in this house that people would eat up.
“What a loving, dysfunctional, chaotic, musical family they were. And it just hit us to keep shooting, which went on for years.”
Ozzy’s death was confirmed by his family in a statement which read: “It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love.
“We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.”
The Mr. Crowley singer’s passing came just weeks after he played his final concert in Birmingham on July 5.