The Oscars were originally scheduled for February 28, 2021.
Los Angeles, United States:
The 93rd Academy Awards have been postponed for eight weeks to April 25 after the coronavirus pandemic closed cinemas and apologized for the Hollywood release schedule, the Academy announced on Monday.
With many studio blockbusters and independent arthouse films forced to push their release dates until cinemas reopen, the deadline for Oscar-eligible films has also been extended from December 31, 2020 to December 28, 2020. February 2021.
“Our hope, by extending the eligibility period and the award date, is to provide the flexibility that filmmakers need to finish and release their films without being penalized for something beyond anyone’s control,” said Academy President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson in a statement.
The biggest movie night was originally scheduled for February 28, 2021.
No decision has yet been made on whether it will remain a live ceremony strewn with stars or whether it will move to a “virtual” presentation.
Most American cinemas remain closed, and fears of a second wave of COVID-19 cases are growing.
The Academy – considered the main body of the Hollywood film industry – had already relaxed certain eligibility rules in April, allowing films that jump on the big screen and appear on streaming platforms to compete for the Oscars this year.
The decision made on Monday was motivated by concerns that an area made up entirely of films released in 2020 might not be as large or competitive as in previous years.
The Oscars have been postponed before – after the Los Angeles flood in 1938, the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr in 1968 and the murder of President Ronald Reagan in 1981 – but never more than a week.
The Academy’s Cinematographic Film Museum, scheduled to open in Los Angeles in December, will open on April 30, 2021.
“For more than a century, movies have played an important role in comforting, inspiring and entertaining us during the darkest times. They certainly have done it this year,” said the statement on Monday.
He added: “The upcoming Oscars and the opening of our new museum will mark a historic moment, bringing together moviegoers from around the world to unite through cinema.”
The Oscars are the grand finale of a season of cinematic awards beginning in earnest with the Golden Globes in early January.
Other film shows are expected to announce similar delays following the Academy’s move.
Meanwhile, the Primetime Emmys TV ceremony is still slated for September, with discussions on the format in progress.
Television Academy said on Monday that its Creative Emmy Arts – dozens of technical awards, usually given out on the weekend before the main Emmys – will be replaced by a “virtual event”.
(This story has not been edited by GalacticGaming staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
