8 Awards Will Not Be Presented Live At The Oscars
The Academy almost tried this a few years ago, but thankfully reversed course. Now, they’re once again saying they’re going to hand out awards in eight categories during a taped pre-show an hour before the live telecast. The presentations and acceptance speeches will be edited and then dropped into the live show (probably before commercial breaks), disrespecting the nominees and winners in the categories of Original Score, Documentary Short, Film Editing, Makeup/Hairstyling, Production Design, Animated Short, Live Action Short, and Sound. Via Hollywood Reporter:
In a move that is already causing tension within the leadership of the Academy, the presentations and acceptance of eight awards — documentary short, film editing, makeup/hairstyling, original score, production design, animated short, live action short and sound — will take place inside the Dolby Theatre an hour before the live telecast commences, will be recorded and will then be edited into the subsequent live broadcast — a variation of a controversial approach that the Academy first adopted and then abandoned in 2018.
The Academy declined comment.
The move comes less than a year after the lowest-rated Oscars telecast ever provoked considerable consternation within the ranks of the Academy’s longtime broadcasting partner ABC, which owns the exclusive rights to air the ceremony through 2028, and the fees from which largely finance the operations of the Academy.
People who love watching the Oscars tune in to see all the winners and their acceptance speeches, and fans of the competitive nature of the show will often look for bellwether wins in categories like editing to predict what will win Best Picture. The presentation of all the categories leading to Best Picture helps build suspense over the course of the 3+ hour show, and you would think people who work in the entertainment industry would understand why this matters? Speaking of Best Picture, by the Academy’s idiotic logic, they might as well not present Best Picture live on air, since the overwhelming majority of Americans haven’t seen most of the movies, and no one will give two shits about seeing an unknown producer give a boring acceptance speech.
