The Academy is making a bold move in an effort to rebound from its worst ratings of all time, cutting eight of its 23 categories from the live broadcast.
The eight categories are Best Documentary Short, Best Film Editing, Best Makeup/Hairstyling, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Animated Short, Best Live-Action Short and Best Sound, though fans will see the awards for these and every other category handed out on Oscar Sunday.
These eight categories will instead be handed out at the Dolby Theater one hour before the live telecast, and then be edited into the live broadcast, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Bold: The Academy is making a bold move in an effort to rebound from its worst ratings of all time, cutting eight of its 23 categories from the live broadcast
Edited: These eight categories will instead be handed out at the Dolby Theater one hour before the live telecast, and then be edited into the live broadcast, according to The Hollywood Reporter
This isn’t the first time the Academy has toyed with removing some of its categories from the telecast.
The Academy announced in August 2018 that they would not broadcast some of the winners live, but the news was met with such immediate backlash it was quickly abandoned.
Both the canceled move in 2018 and this new shift in the broadcast was approved by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences leadership in the Awards Committee.
Not the first: This isn’t the first time the Academy has toyed with removing some of its categories from the telecast
Approved: Both the canceled move in 2018 and this new shift in the broadcast was approved by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences leadership in the Awards Committee
A letter sent to Academy members from Academy President David Rubin on Tuesday clarified, ‘They will not be presented in the pre-show nor on the red carpet, as some have speculated. Instead, the in-person ceremony at the Dolby Theatre will begin one hour earlier to present eight awards categories before the live telecast starts.’
‘Those presentations will then be edited by our creative and production teams and will be folded seamlessly into the live televised show,’ the letter added.
The letter reiterated that, ‘all the nominees in ALL awards categories will be identified on air and ALL winners’ acceptance speeches will be featured on the live broadcast.’
Edited: ‘Those presentations will then be edited by our creative and production teams and will be folded seamlessly into the live televised show,’ the letter added
‘Every awarded filmmaker and artist in every category will still have the celebratory ‘Oscar moment’ they deserve on the stage of the Dolby, facing an enrapt audience,’ the letter added.
The letter also claimed that, for the viewing audience at home, the show will, ‘become tighter and more electric with this new cadence, and the live broadcast should end – yes, with the Best Picture category – at the three-hour mark.’
Rubin added the Academy’s goal is, ‘to find a balance in which nominees, winners, members, and viewing audience all have a rewarding show experience.’
Oscar moment: ‘Every awarded filmmaker and artist in every category will still have the celebratory ‘Oscar moment’ they deserve on the stage of the Dolby, facing an enrapt audience,’ the letter added
The news comes just days after The Academy announced that Regina King, Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer will host the 94th Oscars, airing Sunday, March 27.
The news comes just months after the 93rd Academy Awards sunk to a new low with just 10.4 million viewers tuning in.
That represented a 56% drop from the ratings in February 2020, when 23.6 million viewers tuned in, which was then also an all-time low.
New low: The news comes just months after the 93rd Academy Awards sunk to a new low with just 10.4 million viewers tuning in
The news didn’t sit well with many fans on Twitter, with many fans bashing The Academy for not focusing on the actual movies they’re rewarding.
‘Amazing to me that @TheAcademy has such contempt for filmmakers who aren’t actors or directors,’ said Overhated podcast host Scott Weinberg.
Amazing: ‘Amazing to me that @TheAcademy has such contempt for filmmakers who aren’t actors or directors,’ said Overhated podcast host Scott Weinberg
@DRMovieNews1 added, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if the Oscars cut out the hour of lame comedy sketches and musical performances and instead celebrated every single winner of AN ACADEMY AWARD equally and included more yearly film celebration/reels/tributes? … and they wonder why their ratings are terrible.’
New York Times writer Kyle Buchanan shared an excerpt from The Hollywood Reporter piece about keeping the show at three hours, adding, ‘The Oscars’ obsessive pursuit of the 3-hour mark has never once made the show better.’
The New Yorker’s Emily Nussbaum suggested, ‘Just give the Oscars to five Hollywood randos and then have them prove their worthiness, live, on Oscar night, Willy Wonka style.’
Cut: @DRMovieNews1 added, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if the Oscars cut out the hour of lame comedy sketches and musical performances and instead celebrated every single winner of AN ACADEMY AWARD equally and included more yearly film celebration/reels/tributes? … and they wonder why their ratings are terrible’
Never: New York Times writer Kyle Buchanan shared an excerpt from The Hollywood Reporter piece about keeping the show at three hours, adding, ‘The Oscars’ obsessive pursuit of the 3-hour mark has never once made the show better’
Randos: The New Yorker’s Emily Nussbaum suggested, ‘Just give the Oscars to five Hollywood randos and then have them prove their worthiness, live, on Oscar night, Willy Wonka style’
AwardsWatch’s Erik Anderson revealed the full letter by David Rubin, while confirming the categories that won’t be awarded live.
Variety’s Tomris Laffly quote-retweeted the letter, adding, ‘No, you clearly have NOT listened to the film community and all those who love the #Oscars. And f**k your network partner. This is pathetic.’
SlashFilm’s Josh Spiegel added, ‘The thing I love most about this famous awards show is the part where they don’t actually HAND OUT AWARDS.’
Letter: AwardsWatch’s Erik Anderson revealed the full letter by David Rubin, while confirming the categories that won’t be awarded live
Pathetic: Variety’s Tomris Laffly quote-retweeted the letter, adding, ‘No, you clearly have NOT listened to the film community and all those who love the #Oscars. And f**k your network partner. This is pathetic’
Awards: SlashFilm’s Josh Spiegel added, ‘The thing I love most about this famous awards show is the part where they don’t actually HAND OUT AWARDS’
Author and journalist Mark Harris added, ‘Ugh, this is pathetic. Somebody please save the Oscars from the people who think they know how to save the Oscars.’
Next Best Picture’s Matt Neglia created a hashtag for fans to air their grievances about this: #PresentAll23, adding, ‘I can’t believe we have to do this again but here we are because ABC clearly doesn’t give a shit about those who actually watch the show & nominees and would rather chase an audience who are never going to care as much as we do Please tweet: #PresentAll23.’
Danny Bowes tweeted, ‘The Oscars: “Why don’t people watch The Oscars?” Also the Oscars: “You know what the problem is with our show about movies? Movies.”‘
Save: Author and journalist Mark Harris added, ‘Ugh, this is pathetic. Somebody please save the Oscars from the people who think they know how to save the Oscars’
Hashtag: Next Best Picture’s Matt Neglia created a hashtag for fans to air their grievances about this: #PresentAll23, adding, ‘I can’t believe we have to do this again but here we are because ABC clearly doesn’t give a shit about those who actually watch the show & nominees and would rather chase an audience who are never going to care as much as we do Please tweet: #PresentAll23’
Movies: Danny Bowes tweeted, ‘The Oscars: “Why don’t people watch The Oscars?” Also the Oscars: “You know what the problem is with our show about movies? Movies”‘
In charge: Filmmaker Jessica Ellis tweeted, ‘If I were in charge of the Oscars I would cut the things that aren’t giving Oscars but especially the part where accountants stand on stage with suitcases for a while’
Enjoying: @maddiewhittle tweeted, ‘Anecdotally, it sure seems like those of us who like watching the Oscars have been enjoying the show less and less in recent years, while those of us who don’t like watching the Oscars continue to not enjoy the show at all’
Waste: Zoe Rose Bryant poked fun at the Oscars Fan Favorite category, which Cinderella is currently leading in
Not again: Will Mavity poked fun at the Oscars’ 2018 debunked decision
94TH ACADEMY AWARDS: THE NOMINATIONS
BEST PICTURE
Belfast (Focus Features)
Coda (Apple)
Don’t Look Up (Netflix)
Drive My Car (Janus Films/Sideshow)
Dune (Warner Bros)
King Richard (Warner Bros)
Licorice Pizza (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
Nightmare Alley (Searchlight Pictures)
The Power Of The Dog (Netflix)
West Side Story (20th Century Studios)
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Jessie Buckley – The Lost Daughter
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Judi Dench – Belfast
Kirsten Dunst- The Power Of The Dog
Aunjanue Ellis – King Richard
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Ciaran Hinds – Belfast
Troy Kotsur – Coda
Jesse Plemons – The Power Of The Dog
J.K Simonns – Being The Ricardos
Kodi Smitt-McPhee – The Power Of The Dog
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE: Ariana DeBose is nominated for West Side Story
COSTUME DESIGN
Cruella
Cyrano
Dune
Nightmare Alley
West Side Story
ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND
Belfast
Dune
No Time To Die
The Power Of The Dog
West Side Story
ORIGINAL SCORE
Don’t Look Up
Dune
Encanto
Parallel Mothers
The Power Of The Dog
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Coda
Drive My Car
Dune
The Lost Daughter
The Power Of The Dog
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Belfast
Don’t Look Up
King Richard
Licorice Pizza
The Worst Person In The World
COSTUME DESIGN: Cruella is up for the gong
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Affairs Of The Heart
Bestia
Box Ballet
Robin Robin
The Windshield Wiper
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Ala Kachuu — Take and Run
The Dress
The Long Goodbye
On My Mind
Please Hold
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Drive My Car
Flee
The Hand of God
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom
The Worst Person in the World
PRODUCTION DESIGN
Dune
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
The Tragedy of Macbeth
West Side Story
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Javier Bardem – Being the Ricardos
Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power of the Dog
Andrew Garfield – tick, tick… BOOM!
Will Smith – King Richard
Denzel Washington – The Tragedy of Macbeth
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Jessica Chastain – The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Olivia Colman – The Lost Daughter
Penélope Cruz – Parallel Mothers
Nicole Kidman – Being the Ricardos
Kristen Stewart – Spencer
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE: Kristen Stewart is up for Spencer
DIRECTING
Kenneth Branagh – Belfast
Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car
Steven Spielberg – West Side Story
FILM EDITING
Don’t Look Up
Dune
King Richard
The Power Of The Dog
tick, tick…BOOM!
MAKEUP AND HAIR STYLING
Coming 2 America
Cruella
Dune
The Eyes Of Tammy Faye
House Of Gucci
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells VS The Machine
Raya And The Lost Dragon
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM: Encanto has bagged a nomination
ORIGINAL SONG
Be Alive — Beyoncé Knowles-Carter & Darius Scott (King Richard)
Dos Oruguitas — Lin-Manuel Miranda (Encanto)
Down to Joy — Van Morrison (Belfast)
No Time to Die — Billie Eilish & Finneas O’Connell (No Time to Die)
Somehow You Do— Diane Warren (Four Good Days)
DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Audible
Lead Me Home
The Queen of Basketball
Three Songs for Benazir
When We Were Bullies
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Ascension
Attica
Flee
Summer of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Writing with Fire
VISUAL EFFECTS
Dune
Free Guy
No Time To Die
Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings
Spider-Man: No Way Home
VISUAL EFFECTS: Dune has bagged a nomination
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Dune
Nightmare Alley
The Power Of The Dog
Tragedy Of Macbeth
West Side Story
