2025 Oscar nominations announcement delayed, voting extended and lunch canceled

As the catastrophic Los Angeles wildfires rage nearly a week after they started, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – whose four governors and a former CEO lost their homes to the flames, The Hollywood Reporter has learned — has decided to reconfigure its Oscar season schedule for a second time, out of sensitivity to the SoCal community, which is home to about 60 percent of its roughly 10,000 members.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and president Janet Yang shared in a statement Monday that the 97th Academy Awards have not moved since its date of Sunday, March 2, 2025, which is 48 days from today. However…

• The voting window for Oscar nominations, which began at 9:00 a.m. PT on Wednesday, January 8 and was scheduled to end at 5:00 p.m. PT on Sunday, January 12, was then extended to 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time) on Tuesday, January 14. , has now been extended until 5 p.m. PT on Friday, January 17.

• The Oscar nominations announcement, originally scheduled for 5:30 a.m. PT on Friday, January 17, then extended to an unspecified time on Sunday, January 19, will now take place at 5:30 a.m. PT on Thursday. , January 23. They will be televised, as usual, but this year there will be no press in the audience.

• The Oscar nominees luncheon, originally scheduled for Monday, February 10, has been canceled. (As in recent years, nominees will still be invited to small dinners, closer to the date of the Oscars itself, with other nominees in their category.)

• The presentation of the Scientific and Technical Prizes, initially scheduled for Tuesday February 18, has been postponed. It will be rescheduled at a later date.

These decisions were made in close consultation with the Academy’s 55-person board of directors. Four governors tragically lost their homes in fires — producer branch governor Lynette Howell Taylor (Valentine’s Day Blue), who is also vice-president of the Academy; governor of the visual effects branch Brooke Breton (Avatar); sound branch governor Mark P. Stoeckinger (Star Trek); and governor of the animation branch Jinko Gotoh (Finding Nemo) — just like Dawn Hudsonwho served as CEO of the Academy from 2011 to 2022.

Remarkably, Breton, even after losing his home, still insisted on helping chair his branch’s “Bakeoff” — a showcase for the people behind the shortlisted films to talk about their work — which took place virtually on Saturday.

The Academy, which I’ve heard donated $750,000 to the MPTF to help those affected by the fires, is trying to find a middle ground between some, like Breton, who seem think that the show must go on, and others, like the actress Jean Smartwho suggested that awards season activities should be significantly scaled back, with funds redirected to firefighting efforts.

An often overlooked consideration is the number of people and businesses that are financially dependent on the awards industrial complex, from caterers and drivers to hospitality workers and security personnel. The Academy itself employs some 1,000 people during Oscar broadcast week.

It seems likely that the Oscars will serve as a telethon, of sorts, to raise money for fire relief and to celebrate first responders.

The full text of Kramer and Yang’s statement appears below.

We are devastated by the impact of the fires and the profound loss suffered by so many members of our community. The Academy has always been a unifying force within the film industry and we are determined to remain united in the face of difficulties.

Due to the still active fires in the Los Angeles area, we believe it is necessary to extend our voting period and move the announcement date of our nominations to allow more time for our members.

Additionally, as we want to be sensitive to the region’s infrastructure and accommodation needs over the coming weeks, it is imperative that we make some changes to our events calendar, which we believe will benefit from the support of our industry.

Our members still share the importance of us coming together as a community, and we are determined to take this opportunity to celebrate our resilient and compassionate industry. We also look forward to honoring our frontline workers who contributed to the fires, recognizing those affected, and encouraging people to join the Academy in supporting relief efforts.

We will get through this together and bring a sense of healing to our global film community.