Advertisement

We need your help now

Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.

You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.

If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.

Black Panther took in over $1.3 billion in global box office takings. IMDB/Disney
Hollywood

The Academy is to create an Oscar award for 'popular' films

It’s unclear whether the category will be in place for next year’s ceremony.

THE OSCARS ARE adding a new category to honour popular films and promising a brisk three-hour ceremony and a much earlier air date in 2020.

John Bailey, the newly re-elected president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and film Academy CEO Dawn Hudson said in an email to members this morning that the Board of Governors met last night to approve the changes.

Ratings for the 90th Academy Awards fell to an all-time low of 26.5 million viewers, down 19% from the previous year and the first time the glitzy awards ceremony had fewer than 30 million viewers since 2008.

Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the ceremony also clocked it at nearly four hours, making it the longest show in over a decade.

“We have heard from many of you about improvements needed to keep the Oscars and our Academy relevant in a changing world,” Hudson and Bailey wrote.

In an effort to keep future ceremonies to three hours, the awards will be presented live and during commercial breaks. Specific categories will be determined at a later date, but the winning moments will be edited and aired in a later broadcast.

The film academy is also shifting the date for the 92nd Academy Awards to earlier in the year. The 2019 ceremony will still air on 24 February, while the 2020 show will move to 9 February.

The addition of a popular film category caused the most chatter Wednesday morning, as a clear effort to attract a larger audience by honouring bigger and more seen films.

Bailey and Hudson said eligibility requirements will be determined at a later date. It wasn’t specified whether it would be added for the 91st Academy Awards this coming February.

Oscar viewership is often tied to the box-office muscle of the big nominees.

The 2018 best picture winner, The Shape of Water, had grossed $57.4 million in the  United States by the time the awards aired and $63.9 million total.

The biggest Academy Awards audience on record came in 1998, when the blockbuster Titanic was named best picture.

© – AFP 2018

Author
Associated Foreign Press
Your Voice
Readers Comments
25
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy here before taking part.
Leave a Comment
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.

    Leave a commentcancel