The voting deadline for Oscar nominations has been extended by two days in light of the devastating fires ravaging Southern California.
Voting commenced for the nearly 10,000 Academy members on January 8, with the original closing date set for January 12. The revised deadline is now January 14. Furthermore, the announcement of the nominations, initially slated for January 17, has been postponed to January 19. Conan O’Brien is scheduled to host the 2025 Oscars, which will take place on March 2.
An email circulated by the Academy on Wednesday afternoon outlined these date changes, accompanied by a message from CEO Bill Kramer expressing sympathy for those affected by the catastrophic fires. “We wish to convey our deepest condolences to those impacted by the devastating events across Southern California,” the email remarked. “Many of our members and industry colleagues reside and work within the Los Angeles area, and they remain in our thoughts.”
Additional adjustments to the schedule that were communicated in the email include:
– The International Feature Shortlist Screening originally scheduled for Wednesday evening in Los Angeles has been postponed until later in the week.
– Both the in-person Los Angeles Sound Branch Bake-Off and the Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch Bake-Offs scheduled for January 11 in Los Angeles and New York City have been canceled.
– The in-person Visual Effects Branch Bake-Offs in both Los Angeles and the Bay Area, previously set for January 11, have also been canceled.
The extension of the voting period is a response to a wave of event cancellations and postponements throughout the Los Angeles area due to the ongoing crisis. Major studios such as Amazon MGM and Universal Studios were among the first to cancel their premieres of “Unstoppable” and “Wolf Man,” originally slated for Tuesday evening. Meanwhile, Paramount and Max followed suit, canceling their Wednesday premieres of “Better Man” and “The Pitt.”
The SAG Awards nominations, which were set to be revealed live on Wednesday morning by Joey King and Cooper Koch, pivoted to being announced via press release instead. Additionally, both the AFI Awards luncheon on January 10 and the BAFTA Tea Party on January 11 have been postponed, while the Critics Choice Awards, initially scheduled for January 12 in Santa Monica, have been rescheduled to January 26.
“The 30th annual Critics Choice Awards ceremony has been rescheduled from January 12 to January 26 due to the catastrophic fires impacting Southern California,” stated a release from the Critics Choice Association (CCA) issued on Wednesday. “The rescheduled event will take place at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, and will be broadcast live on E! around the world, with subsequent availability on Peacock the following day.”
CCA CEO Joey Berlin remarked, “This unfolding tragedy has profoundly affected our community. Our thoughts and prayers are with those combating these devastating fires and with everyone impacted.”
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