Oscars delayed two months until April by COVID-19; films released by Feb. 28 now eligible
The coronavirus pandemic has caused delays to most of this year’s biggest movies and now, to next year’s grandest night in Hollywood.
The 93rd Academy Awards, originally scheduled for Feb. 28, 2021, has been delayed to April 25 because of the ongoing health crisis. The Oscars ceremony will still be held at L.A.’s Dolby Theatre and air live on ABC.
The eligibility period for Academy Awards consideration has been extended beyond the usual Dec. 31 deadline. For the upcoming Oscars, a feature film must now have a qualifying release date between January 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021. As previously announced, for this year only, movies that premiere on streaming platforms will be eligible in Oscar categories.
The Oscars move and extended eligibility window is already affecting other events in the upcoming award season: The BAFTAs also announced Monday that its film awards were being pushed from Feb. 14, 2021 to April 11. There hasn’t been a date announced yet for the upcoming Golden Globes, usually held in early January, while the Screen Actors Guild Awards are currently slated for Jan. 24, 2021.
Oscars:Academy to implement diversity standards for eligibility, set best picture at 10 nominees
This is only the fourth time in Oscars history that the ceremony has been delayed. The first postponement, in 1938, was due to massive flooding in Los Angeles, and subsequent delays stemmed from the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 and an attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981. The 1981 decision came just four hours before the broadcast was scheduled to begin.
