Film fans will have to wait a little longer for the 93rd Academy Awards.
On Monday, the Academy announced its decision to push back next year’s Oscars ceremony from February 28 to April 25, 2021. The eligibility requirements for films has also shifted. Instead of the traditional calendar year, the deadline will now be extended to feature films released up to Feb. 28, 2021. Nominations will now be announced on March 15, 2021.
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It's true! Next year's #Oscars will happen on April 25, 2021.
Here's what else you need to know:
– The eligibility period for the Oscars will be extended to February 28, 2021
– Nominations will be announced on March 15, 2021
– @AcademyMuseum will open on April 30, 2021 pic.twitter.com/cTsqOfsf8k— The Academy (@TheAcademy) June 15, 2020
The shift in dates had been expected due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
“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,” said Academy President David Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson in a statement.
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Moving the ceremony date due to extenuating circumstances is not without precedent. The Oscars have been delayed three times in the past – over flooding in Los Angeles in 1938, following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968, and after the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan in 1981.
In conjunction with the new date, further changes were also announced surrounding submission and voting deadlines. The Academy also cancelled the annual Governors Awards scheduled for this fall and have yet to announce a date for this year’s Scientific and Technical Awards presentation which was originally scheduled for June 20, 2020.
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The long-awaited Academy Museum of Motion Pictures was slated to open this December, but it too will now move to 2021 with an opening date of April 30.
Last week, the Academy announced the Best Picture category will be set at 10 nominees instead of allowing for up to 10 nominees in the category in an attempt to increase diversity and representation.
