The Oscars have watched their ratings decline at a steady rate over the last few years, so the Academy is giving them what they feel will be a facelift. In efforts to ‘slim down’ the awards show, eight awards will be presented off-air during next month’s telecast, which will be the 94th Annual Awards Show.
Members of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences received a letter on Tuesday that highlighted the changes, where President David Rubin provided more information on which awards will be presented before the March 27th live broadcast on ABC. Those awards include Film Editing, Production Design, Sound, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (original score) and three short film awards (documentary, live-action and animated).
The show will deviate from its normal all-at-once live broadcast at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood and will begin an hour before the telecast does. The presentation and speeches of those early eight winners will be edited and featured during the three-hour live broadcast, which Rubin emphasized will still provide each winner with their “Oscar moment.”
The changes, according to Rubin, were necessary for the future health of the Academy Awards. “When decided 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 discission for quite some time. We do this while also remembering the importance of having our nominees relish a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he wrote.
The Oscars have normally included 23 categories, but the Academy has been exploring the idea of reducing that number as of late. In 2019, they initially sought to air only 4 of them – cinematography, editing, makeup and hairstyling and live-action short – in a shortened, taped segment. Naturally, following some backlash, the academy reversed itself just days before the show.
Ratings continue to plummet, though, as last year’s broadcast (severely altered by COVID-19) plummeted to the worst its ever seen at 9.85 million viewers. This is a stark contrast to 2018, when 29.6 million watched. Pressure has mounted for ABC, the Oscars’ longtime broadcast partner, as well as within the academy to innovate a cultural institution that has long resisted changed.
More recently, the drama surrounding perspective hosts of the show and the lack of diversity within has added another layer of concern. This year, producers are turning to the trio of Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes, and will also recognize the favorite movie as voted on by fans on Twitter.
Those looking forward to the awards show this year should curb their expectations and can refer to the Grammys and Tonys when it comes to the structure they can expect to see. New viewership lows have hit both of those shows as well, though, as the world transitions away from network television broadcast and has gravitated toward streaming media.
A “tighter and more electric” show has been promised by Rubin, as the category shifts are implemented alongside an ‘eyebrow-raising tweak’ from last year’s ceremony that won’t be returning