Oscars: Nominations Voting Extended and Announcement Delayed Again, Nominees Luncheon Canceled
As the catastrophic Los Angeles wildfires rage on nearly a week after they began, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — four governors and a former CEO of which lost their homes to the flames, The Hollywood Reporter has learned — has decided to reconfigure its Oscar season timetable for a second time out of sensitivity to the SoCal community, which is home to some 60 percent of its roughly 10,000 members.
Academy CEO Bill Kramer and president Janet Yang shared in a statement on Monday that the 97th Academy Awards has not moved from its date of Sunday, March 2, 2025, which is 48 days from today. However …
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? The Oscar nominations voting window, which began at 9 a.m. PT on Wednesday, Jan. 8, and was to have ended at 5 p.m. PT on Sunday, Jan. 12, and then was extended until 5 p.m. PT on Tuesday, Jan. 14, has now been extended to 5 p.m. PT on Friday, Jan. 17.
? The Oscar nominations announcement, which was originally scheduled for 5:30 a.m. PT on Friday, Jan. 17, and then was extended to an unspecified time on Sunday, Jan. 19, will now take place at 5:30 a.m. PT on Thursday, Jan. 23. It will be televised, as usual, but this year there will not be any press in the audience.
? The Oscar Nominees Luncheon, which was originally scheduled for Monday, Feb. 10, has been canceled. (As in recent years, nominees will still be invited to small dinners, closer to the date of the Oscars ceremony itself, with others who are nominated in their category.)
? The Scientific and Technical Awards, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 18, has been postponed. It will be rescheduled at a later date.
These decisions were made in close consultation with the Academy’s 55-person board of governors. Four governors tragically lost their homes in the fires — producers branch governor Lynette Howell Taylor (Blue Valentine), who also serves as a vp of the Academy; visual effects branch governor Brooke Breton (Avatar); sound branch governor Mark P. Stoeckinger (Star Trek); and animation branch governor Jinko Gotoh (Finding Nemo) — as did Dawn Hudson, who served as the Academy’s CEO from 2011 through 2022.
Remarkably, Breton, even after losing her home, still insisted on helping to preside over her branch’s “bakeoff” — a showcase for people behind shortlisted films to talk about their work — that took place virtually on Saturday.
The Academy, which I hear has donated $750,000 to the MPTF to help those affected by the fires, is trying to find a middle ground between those who seem to feel that the show must go on and others who aren’t so sure, like the actress Jean Smart, who has suggested that awards season activities should be significantly curbed.
An often-overlooked consideration is just how many people and businesses are financially dependent on the awards-industrial complex, from caterers and drivers to hotel workers and security personnel. The Academy itself employs some 1,000 people during the week of the Oscars telecast.
It seems likely that the Oscars will serve as a telethon, of sorts, to raise funds for fire relief and to celebrate first-responders.
The full text of Kramer and Yang’s statement appears below.
We are devastated by the impact of the fires and the profound losses experienced by so many in our community. The Academy has always been a unifying force within the film industry, and we are committed to standing together in the face of hardship.
Due to the still-active fires in the Los Angeles area, we feel it is necessary to extend our voting period and move the date of our nominations announcement to allow additional time for our members.
Additionally, as we want to be sensitive to the infrastructure and ldging needs of the region in these next few weeks, it is imperative that we make some changes to our schedule of events, which we believe will have the support of our industry.
Our members always share how important it is for us to come together as a community, and we are determined to use this opportunity to celebrate our resilient and compassionate industry. We also look forward to honoring our frontline workers who have aided with the fires, recognizing those impacted, and encouraging people to join the Academy in supporting the relief efforts.
We will get through this together and bring a sense of healing to our global film community.
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