New Haven Register (Sunday) (New Haven, CT)
With just days before show time, a full-on revolt over the Oscars
Would anyone — anyone at all — like to thank the academy?
This is normally the time of year when Oscar hopefuls are readying acceptance speeches that almost always begin with a few words of gratitude for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. But that sentiment has been hard to come by in the torturous and troubled leadup to the 91st Academy Awards.
After a litany of public-relations disasters, backtracks and missteps, the latest dust-up surrounds the film academy’s plans to remove four categories from the live portion of Feb. 24’s broadcast, including cinematography and editing. The academy, desperate to reverse sliding ratings, says a shortened show must go on.
Dozens of Hollywood heavyweights — including Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, Brad Pitt, cinematographer Roger Deakins and director Damien Chazelle — issued an open letter to the academy’s leadership blasting the decision to not air live the four awards, which also include liveaction short and hairstyling and makeup.
“Relegating these essential cinematic crafts to lesser status in this 91st Academy Awards ceremony is nothing less than an insult to those of us who have devoted our lives and passions to our chosen profession,” the group wrote.
The academy responded with a letter of its own, blaming “inaccurate reporting and social media posts” for “a chain of misinformation.” Signed by academy president John Bailey, a cinematographer, and other officers from the academy’s board of governors, the letter sought to assure members that the four winning speeches will be included in the broadcast (just not live, or with a walk to the stage) and that in future years, four to six different categories will be similarly truncated.
After years of #OscarSoWhite backlash, one infamous envelope mix-up and the reckoning that followed the expulsion of Harvey Weinstein from the academy, the
academy’s headaches began after it last summer trotted out the induction of a “popular film Oscar.” The plan sparked such outrage that the new award was scuttled within a month.
Then Kevin Hart withdrew as host of this year’s awards after criticism of old stand-up material and tweets about homosexuality. The Oscars are now host-less for only the fifth time in its 91-year history.
The academy is insistent on getting the normally four hour-plus telecast down to three hours. Ratings for all award shows have declined in recent years, but it remains to be seen whether a shorter show will have any effect on larger viewing habit transformations.
“They make about six or seven million dollars a year off of the Academy Awards on television which pays for the academy,” says Michael Douglas, a two-time Oscar winner. “How do you put together an entertaining show versus (honor the winners)? So, I understand as far as a television viewing audience show, they don’t do a very good job.”