Facing ratings crisis, Oscars telecast plans emphasis on entertainment over awards

Faced with an existential crisis of dwindling ratings and a lack of blockbuster nominees, the motion picture academy is making a major change to this year’s Oscars: Not every award will be presented live during the telecast.

While the starriest of the 23 categories will be given out live on air, five below-the-line awards and the three short film awards will be handed out before the telecast begins, with clips of the presentations and acceptance speeches then edited into the broadcast. The affected categories are film editing, makeup and hairstyling, original score, production design and sound as well as documentary short subject, animated short and live-action short.

While such a move has long been contemplated, shifting awards out of the hallowed Oscar ceremony is not a step the academy’s leadership takes lightly — or that all of the group’s members are likely to welcome. The academy prizes its traditions, and the members cherish their opportunity to have their craft and artistry celebrated in front of a global audience.

In 2018, a plan to give out four awards — cinematography, editing, live-action short and makeup and hairstyling — during commercial breaks in that year’s telecast sparked bitter protests from members who felt it would represent a slight to some of film’s most vital crafts. Just days before the ceremony, faced with a vocal protest from a group of prominent cinematographers and filmmakers, the academy reversed the decision.

In a letter Tuesday to the group’s roughly 10,000 members, academy president David Rubin seemed to acknowledge the changes were spurred by the need to boost ratings, which hit an all-time low with the COVID pandemic-impacted 2021 show.

“After carefully listening to feedback and suggestions from our film community, our network partner, and all those who love the Oscars, it was evident we needed to make some decisions about the broadcast that are in the best interest of the future of our show and our organization,” Rubin wrote. “We must prioritize the television audience to increase viewer engagement and keep the show vital, kinetic, and relevant. This has been an important focus of discussion for quite some time.”

Indeed, two years into a pandemic that has accelerated a shift away from big-screen moviegoing, the academy’s leaders are faced with the need to take unprecedented steps to safeguard the future of its all-important Oscars show. With this year’s show, set for March 27, the academy is desperate to convey the message to audiences that not only the awards but movies themselves still matter.

In a further bid to inject more populist appeal into this year’s show, which will be hosted by Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes, last week the academy announced that for the first time, fans will be able to vote on their favorite movie of 2021 via Twitter.

In his letter to members, Rubin explained that the eight affected categories — which, to many viewers, often represent bathroom breaks during what academy leaders know can be a bloated show — will be presented in the Dolby Theatre in the hour right before the live broadcast begins rather than during the live show itself.

A similar strategy is employed by the Tony Awards; the Primetime Emmys and Grammy Awards have never doled out all of their awards in a single live broadcast.

“To be clear, all the nominees in ALL awards categories will be identified on air and ALL winners’ acceptance speeches will be featured on the live broadcast,” Rubin wrote, while acknowledging that those moments will be edited down to help the telecast's pacing. “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.”

Rubin added, “For the audience at home, the show’s flow does not change, though it 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.” (Last year’s show drew pans for moving the Oscar for best picture from its traditional position as the evening’s climactic award.)

While noting that the decision was endorsed by the academy’s 54-member board — whose governors represent the 17 branches of the organization — and the group's Awards Committee, Rubin also acknowledged that some in the group may not embrace the change. “We realize these kinds of changes can prompt concern about equity, and we ask you to understand our goal has been to find a balance in which nominees, winners, members, and viewing audience all have a rewarding show experience,” he wrote.

In recent years, the academy has reversed a number of decisions aimed at revivifying the flagging show, including a much-maligned proposal to institute a “best popular film award.” But to preserve the long-term viability of the Oscars, Rubin suggested, changes were necessary.

“Moving forward we will assess this change and will continue to look for additional ways to make our show more entertaining and more thrilling for all involved, inside the Dolby Theatre and watching from home,” Rubin wrote.

The complete text of Rubin's letter follows:

Dear Fellow Academy Members,

We’re excited to present a 94th Oscars broadcast that both honors the year’s achievements in motion pictures and provides boundless entertainment for our global audience of movie lovers. After carefully listening to feedback and suggestions from our film community, our network partner, and all those who love the Oscars, it was evident we needed to make some decisions about the broadcast that are in the best interest of the future of our show and our organization.

When deciding how to produce the Oscars, we recognize it’s a live event television show and we must prioritize the television audience to increase viewer engagement and keep the show vital, kinetic, and relevant. This has been an important focus of discussion for quite some time. We do this while also remembering the importance of having our nominees relish a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

In order to provide more time and opportunity for audience entertainment and engagement through comedy, musical numbers, film clip packages and movie tributes, a change in the show’s production will take place. This year’s show producers and Academy leadership with oversight of the Oscars have made the decision, with endorsement from the officers and the Awards Committee, that every awards category must be featured on the television broadcast, though eight awards will initially be presented in the Dolby Theatre in the hour before the live broadcast begins.

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.

To be clear, all the nominees in ALL awards categories will be identified on air and ALL winners’ acceptance speeches will be featured on the live broadcast. 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.

For the audience at home, the show’s flow does not change, though it 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.

This year, those categories presented in the evening’s first hour and seen later in the live broadcast are, alphabetically: Documentary (Short Subject), Film Editing, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Production Design, Short Film (Animated), Short Film (Live Action), and Sound.

The categories to be presented live on this year’s broadcast are, alphabetically: Actor in a Leading Role, Actor in a Supporting Role, Actress in a Leading Role, Actress in a Supporting Role, Animated Feature Film, Best Picture, Cinematography, Costume Design, Directing, Documentary (Feature), International Feature Film, Music (Original Song), Visual Effects, Writing (Adapted Screenplay), and Writing (Original Screenplay).

We realize these kinds of changes can prompt concern about equity, and we ask you to understand our goal has been to find a balance in which nominees, winners, members, and viewing audience all have a rewarding show experience. Moving forward we will assess this change and will continue to look for additional ways to make our show more entertaining and more thrilling for all involved, inside the Dolby Theatre and watching from home.

Every Academy branch and award category is indispensable to the success of a film and vital to this industry. Both our challenge and our goal is to create an exciting, streamlined Oscars show without sacrificing the long-held fundamentals of our organization. We appreciate your understanding and will be grateful for your unwavering support.

Sincerely,

David Rubin

Academy President

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.