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ORGANISERS HAVE POSTPONED the announcement of this year’s finalists for the Oscars next month due to the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, California.
Thousands of homes and businesses in northern Los Angeles have been destroyed as firefighters battle multiple blazes. At least 24 people have been killed during the wildfires and more than 90,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their homes.
Organisers of the Academy Awards have postponed the announcement of who is in contention to win an Oscar this year as there are still active fires in the area where the event was to be held.
The announcement will now be made during an online event on 23 January.
Irish rap group Kneecap have been nominated for two awards for their dramatised biopic of the same name. It is the second-ever Irish-language film to feature on the shortlist for the category.
As many of the Academy’s members have been impacted by the fires, CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang said last night that the voting period for choosing the finalists has been extended until Friday.
Many in the industry are weighing how to navigate the award season – an endless series of swanky premieres, galas and prize-giving ceremonies – without appearing tone-deaf to the suffering of a city that is home to hundreds of thousands working in film and TV.
Actress Jean Smart has advocated scrapping the entire season, urging TV networks to instead donate “the revenue they would have garnered to the victims of the fires and the firefighters” instead.
But the Academy said Monday that it would go ahead with its gala evening, the traditional finale to the season of gong-giving, hinting first responders would be present at the Dolby Theatre on 2 March.
“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,” Kramer and Yang said in a joint statement.
“We also look forward to honoring our frontline workers who have aided with the fires, recognising those impacted, and encouraging people to join the Academy in supporting the relief efforts.”
Music’s equivalent awards ceremony, The Grammys, would also proceed as planned, organizers said Monday.
A leaked letter from the organisers detailed that the music awards will be held at the Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles, in coordination with local authorities.
As well as honoring nominees including Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Kendrick Lamar, the show will look to raise cash to support relief efforts, and will pay tribute to first responders engaged in the battle against the blazes, the letter said.
The Sundance Film Festival, which begins next week in Utah, will also proceed. “Right now, we may mourn, but we also know it is important to carry on,” said organisers.
A lunch event, scheduled for 10 February, has been cancelled while a ceremony for scientific and technical awards, scheduled for 18 February, will be rescheduled.
Meanwhile, singer Beyoncé postponed a secret announcement she was set to make today.
Posting to her Instagram, she said she felt it was not the time to make the announcement and instead paid tribute to the “brave” first responders fighting the wildfires. She urged her followers to donate to a relief fund that she has set up for the cohort impacted by the blazes.
Contains reporting from © AFP 2025
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The trough just keeps getting bigger.
@Mel Fitzpatrick: not nearly as big as the social welfare entitlement trough.
@John Terry: Lol, silly comment
With less population per TD now, are they up for a paycut? Seems only fair.
They’re the least of our concerns at the moment going week to week watching those gombeans talk nonsense in the dail year in year out they’ve certainly done a fantastic job with the housing crisis over the last 10 years the future looks great if you can live in a house the size of a kennel
Now we have to listen to more waffle, pay more to hear it , this country is going down the swamp, since these crowd have taken over , we need a new party for the Irish taxpayers, not the European Puppet masters.
Netherlands 15 million has 150
Wixford lol
@Modern Irish Dad: Where’s that?? Lol
Gombeens, party comes first, then the pinsion, then the unvouched expenses, then the subsistence for turning up to do your job, What a great little country.
Lucky for Josepha Madigan but less lucky for others.
Swings and roundabouts!
@Nestor:
Definitely.
Senator Malcom Byrne FF will be counting his lucky stars, he’s based in gorey which will probably be the biggest town in the new constituency. I’d say one SF, one FF and anyones guess for the last.
Which Wexford TD will lose out?
If I was Paul Kehoe I would be worried as would the Green TD in Wicklow
@P.J. Nolan: I’m in Gorey and I’d absolutely vote for the Green TD in Wicklow over Snr Malcolm Byrne.
Unlikely you will get the chance, Steven Matthews is based in Bray.
It’s about time we had more TD’s to make us feel safe in our homes…
Is wixford a new constituity.
@Terry Mckenna: don’t give them ideas they might actually try it wouldn’t surprise us
@Terry Mckenna: ya, not to be confused with Wexlow
I read all these comments and I think, if you think you can do better then get elected. But ye won’t because you prefer to belly ache. Get over yourselves, it’s Democracy
Amazing how they adhere to the constitution when it suits them.
Anyone who votes for any one of this crowd in government who have lied consistently to their own people with regard to illegal migrants, fake Ukrainian refugees, their anti farmer stance, the price gouging by the banks and ultility companies, their attack on our freedoms during the Covid scam, the climate emergency BS etc etc etc should hang their head in shame. They are working for the WEF/EU/UN not the Irish people. They were able to get beautiful modular homes ready in jig time for military aged men from around the globe while Irish families struggle to put a roof over their heads. Please stop voting for these EU shills. The only reason we don’t have more youth homelessness is many of our graduates have left the country thinking they’ll be fine when they come back with their UAE tax free money, come back to what. Ireland in another decade of the current demographic change being implemented by our so called government won’t exist. Elections have serious consequences.
have your say