This morning we reported that The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences was having a meeting about postponing The Oscars and extending the eligibility timeframe and now it’s official: The 2021 ceremony will be pushed by two months to April 25.
Hollywood’s big night, which was originally slated for February 28, will also see its eligibility requirements for movies extended by two months. Movies that have a qualifying release date between January 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021, will now be able to compete in the next Oscars Submission dates for various categories. The April 25th date is now the latest date ever since Oscar started in the TV era in 1953.
Also delayed is the opening of the Academy’s new Museum of Motion Pictures which moves from December 14, 2020, as announced by Tom Hanks on the most recent Oscar show to April 30, 2021. The Gala opening will take place on Saturday, April 17 just a week before Oscar Sunday. The hope is that the COVID-19 pandemic will have mostly subsided in time to properly host the star-studded event as it has always been presented.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences worked very closely with the studios/distributors to see what they needed to finish and ready films before they reached their decision to push the ceremony. AMPAS also worked closely with the LA Department of Public Health, and Dr. Atul Nakhasi among others, whose advice was to push out as far as possible to allow for as much information on the pandemic as possible. Academy President David Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson had this to say about the decision:
“For over a century, movies have played an important role in comforting, inspiring, and entertaining us during the darkest of times. They certainly have this year. Our hope, in extending the eligibility period and our Awards date, is to provide the flexibility filmmakers need to finish and release their films without being penalized for something beyond anyone’s control. This coming Oscars and the opening of our new museum will mark an historic moment, gathering movie fans around the world to unite through cinema.”
Future eligibility windows and the Oscar show date for 2022 will be announced at a later date as will information regarding the 12th annual Governors Awards which AMPAS confirms will not take place, as usual, this fall.
