94th Academy Awards Discussion Thread | WHAT JUST HAPPENED

[BadOlCatSylvester]

It's honestly crazy that the first streaming movie to ever win a Best Picture might not be from the unstoppable behemoth Netflix, but rather Apple TV+, a service only Jason Sudeikis simps use.

 

CODA winning makes even more sense when you factor in the generally chaotic and messy state society has been the past couple of years. At a time when people need comfort and fluff more than ever, what better movie to provide it than CODA? I wouldn't be surprised if the Academy picks it because of how much comfort it gave them during times like these

 

As long as Don't Look Up walks away empty handed we all win.

[CoolioD1]

CODA will be the first best picture winner where I'm pretty sure nobody i know is aware that movie even exists. even nomadland i knew a couple people who checked it out when it dropped on disney+.

[grim22]

If CODA pulls it off, it will definitely be because Power of the Dog never felt like a frontrunner with a lot of actual support behind it. More like a frontrunner by default between itself and Belfast in a year where most movies didn't have passionate support. The CODA cast is also so likeable when they get on stage to collect their awards that it helped the movie peak at the right time for the wins rather than the nominations.

[filmlover]

Apple definitely played it smart with CODA by dropping it in the summer. It ended up going from a movie that seemed to be lucky to be nominated for anything at all to the true underdog of an awards season that clearly lacked a frontrunner that everyone could get behind.

[lorddemaxus]

2 hours ago, filmlover said:

Apple definitely played it smart with CODA by dropping it in the summer. It ended up going from a movie that seemed to be lucky to be nominated for anything at all to the true underdog of an awards season that clearly lacked a frontrunner that everyone could get behind.

More like, Apple played it smart by having literally no one watch it. Would not be surprised if Coda was the last nominee most of the industry watched.

[DAJK]

I would genuinely love it if CODA won. It wasn’t my favourite of the nominees, but I think I have it at #3. 

[filmlover]

Oscars Ads Sell Out as Disney Hopes for ‘Rebuild’ After Ratings Fall (EXCLUSIVE)

Oscars Commercials Sold Out As Disney Hopes for 'Rebuild' - Variety

 

Disney is expected to have some movie marketing during the ceremony. First instinct is that it's the trailer debut for Thor (since there's a lot of speculation that isn't making its July date going around) but could just as easily be Doctor Strange/Lightyear commercials. Lionsgate is also going to have an ad, presumably a commercial for The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent playing up its Oscar connections (Oscar-winning actor Nic Cage, one-time Oscar host NPH).

[filmlover]

Quote

FINAL UPDATE, 4 PM: Oscarcast producers Will Packer and Shayla Cowan have opened the envelope on the final batch of presenters for the 94th annual Academy Awards. Josh Brolin, Jacob Elordi, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jason Momoa, Jill Scott, J.K. Simmons, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and make up the final group announced as presenters for Hollywood’s Biggest Night.

Oscar Presenters 2022 – Full List So Far – Deadline

 

Jacob Elordi? lmao they're really trying to get the Euphoria viewers as well.

 

No McDormand or Zhao it seems. Gonna lean into the theory of "they're boycotting the ceremony over the behind the scenes stuff."

[BoxOfficeFangrl]

Riding that Deep Water buzz to bring in Jacob Elordi...

 

The full list of announced presenters:

 

Halle Bailey
Stephanie Beatriz
Josh Brolin
Ruth E. Carter
Sean “Diddy” Combs
Kevin Costner
Jamie Lee Curtis
DJ Khaled
Jacob Elordi
Jennifer Garner
Jake Gyllenhaal
Woody Harrelson
H.E.R.
Tiffany Haddish
Tony Hawk
Anthony Hopkins
Daniel Kaluuya
Samuel L. Jackson
Lady Gaga
Lily James
Zoë Kravitz
Mila Kunis
John Leguizamo
Simu Liu
Rami Malek
Shawn Mendes
Jason Momoa
Bill Murray
Lupita Nyong’o
Elliot Page
Rosie Perez
Chris Rock
Jill Scott
Naomi Scott
Tyler Perry
Tracee Ellis Ross
J.K. Simmons
Kelly Slater
Wesley Snipes
Uma Thurman
John Travolta
Shaun White
Serena Williams
Venus Williams
Yuh-Jung Youn
Rachel Zegler

 

 

There usually ends up being a surprise or two on Oscar night, especially for the bigger categories.  Of course, these producers want to do things differently and maybe they already announced them all. I guess we'll see.

[Ozymandias]

10 hours ago, CoolioD1 said:

CODA will be the first best picture winner where I'm pretty sure nobody i know is aware that movie even exists. even nomadland i knew a couple people who checked it out when it dropped on disney+.

 

Along with the actual shows themselves becoming increasingly cringe in the last decade or so, this is why the Oscars are spiraling into irrelevancy...the films are becoming increasingly obscure and even niche.  Sure, they still nominate like 1 or 2 popular films every year like DUNE but even normies know film noms like that are just pandering for eyeballs with a 0% chance of ever winning anything outside of tech noms so why tune in, long gone are the days of epics Gladiator, LOTR, etc. being legitimate contenders.  Of all the nominees this year, I've only seen 4 of them(Dune, Nightmare Alley, Dog Power, and Don't Look Up) and two of those I never would've bothered to seek out if they weren't Netflix releases and boy good thing they were because I think they're both awful dreck.  On a scale of 1-10 my interest in the rest of those nominees is like -5.

 

The Academy is feeling more and more like some rich douchey yacht club from Marthas Vineyard or something where they all get together and talk about how awesome they and their dumb boats are.

[BestPicturePlutoNash]

43 minutes ago, Ozymandias said:

 

Along with the actual shows themselves becoming increasingly cringe in the last decade or so, this is why the Oscars are spiraling into irrelevancy...the films are becoming increasingly obscure and even niche.  Sure, they still nominate like 1 or 2 popular films every year like DUNE but even normies know film noms like that are just pandering for eyeballs with a 0% chance of ever winning anything outside of tech noms so why tune in, long gone are the days of epics Gladiator, LOTR, etc. being legitimate contenders.  Of all the nominees this year, I've only seen 4 of them(Dune, Nightmare Alley, Dog Power, and Don't Look Up) and two of those I never would've bothered to seek out if they weren't Netflix releases and boy good thing they were because I think they're both awful dreck.  On a scale of 1-10 my interest in the rest of those nominees is like -5.

 

The Academy is feeling more and more like some rich douchey yacht club from Marthas Vineyard or something where they all get together and talk about how awesome they and their dumb boats are.

Conflating personal opinions and interest with the masses. How is West Side Story, a Spielberg film, obscure and niche? Will Smith is one of the biggest stars on the planet and made a movie about the two biggest female athletes. Doesn’t seem niche. How is a Dune nomination pandering? It’s no different than Fellowship of Ring being nominated, while Return of the King won. Part 2 of Dune can be a viable winning contender. How are the days of epics being contenders long gone? 1917 happened pre-pandemic and was runner-up to a sensation like Parasite. The Revenant was 2015 release and won Actor and Director. 

[filmlover]

The devaluing of the Oscars is largely a direct result of not only the ceremony itself becoming more and more of a chore to sit through over the years and a shifting culture in how people consume media, but also because it's hardly the only awards show in town anymore. One of the main complaints that seems to pop up every year is "there's too many awards shows" (something that definitely wasn't common back when the Oscars and - RIP? - the Golden Globes were the end-all, be-all events that they once were), but with so many events that pretty much indicate where the season will go early on that even someone who doesn't closely follow the industry is well aware of, there's hardly any suspense heading into the big night anymore unless there's a shock third act twist like the Moonlight/La La Land gaffe or last year's cynical (and done in vain) rearranging of the categories. 

Edited March 24, 2022 by filmlover

[filmlover]

lol this whole mess has done nothing but buy them an almost neverending series of negative headlines. They deserve whatever dismal ratings/poor reviews are coming their way.

 

 

A four-time #Oscar-nominated sound mixer has resigned from The Academy: “I can’t imagine a purpose for staying in an organization that doesn't respect my craft anymore" https://t.co/wrfQrzibqb

— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) March 24, 2022

[BestPicturePlutoNash]

5 minutes ago, filmlover said:

lol this whole mess has done nothing but buy them an almost neverending series of negative headlines. They deserve whatever dismal ratings/poor reviews are coming their way.

 

 

I said before but the ratings will improve even slightly since all viewership has increased this year and they’ll view the ceremony as a success despite the negative publicity and the inevitable poor reviews to come. Oh well. Just as long as they don’t resign Will Packer for next year

[BestPicturePlutoNash]

The Academy when the industry protests unfair treatment of its branches: sleep

 

The Academy when Rachel Zegler stages a PR stunt for an invite: REAL SHIT

[filmlover]

1 hour ago, BestPicturePlutoNash said:

I said before but the ratings will improve even slightly since all viewership has increased this year and they’ll view the ceremony as a success despite the negative publicity and the inevitable poor reviews to come. Oh well. Just as long as they don’t resign Will Packer for next year

Between this Twitter thing, some of the categories being pushed out of the ceremony to accommodate what will likely be unnecessary filler, and the complete randomness of some of these presenters (how much did they contemplate inviting people like Addison Rae to present? It's not like they would've said "no" to the opportunity since they'll never be seeing the inside of the Dolby under any other circumstance), I get the sense that anything less than 40 million viewers will be seen as a failure in ABC's eyes. That's what happens when you chase a viewer that doesn't even exist.

 

If the reviews are as bad as everyone is expecting them to be there's very little chance of them asking Packer back. Given the PR mess The Walt Disney Company is currently embroiled in, I'll be surprised if they don't attempt to get a powerhouse LGBTQIA producer on board for next year's ceremony. Earlier I joked about Ryan Murphy inevitably producing these but I can totally see them trying to recruit either him or Greg Berlanti over the next few months as the damage control continues.

[BoxOfficeFangrl]

18 hours ago, BestPicturePlutoNash said:

The Academy when the industry protests unfair treatment of its branches: sleep

 

The Academy when Rachel Zegler stages a PR stunt for an invite: REAL SHIT

Adding a 20 year old Disney star as a presenter last minute doesn't really contradict their goal of a 3-hour show. Presenting all 23, on the other hand...

 

 

Overwhelming Penelope Cruz support in the Anonymous Ballots, but it could be a skewed sample.

[filmlover]

Quote

Encanto cast members Adassa, Stephanie Beatriz, Mauro Castillo, Carolina Gaitan, and Diane Guerrero, along with Becky G and Luis Fonsi will be performing “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.” 

Oscars: ‘Encanto’ Smash Hit Confirmed For Prime Production Number – Deadline

[BoxOfficeFangrl]

The Oscars set is going to have tables/booths, for the chosen ones at least...

 

 

 

 

The Honest Ballots are cherry picked for drama but I'm surprised by how much Campion's comment about the Williams Sisters has come up and how some aren't voting for her as a result. It was a bad joke, but much worse has been easily forgiven. I wonder how much of it is due to people already not liking Power of the Dog that much to begin with...

Edited March 25, 2022 by BoxOfficeFangrl

[filmlover]

I actually like that set design. Meanwhile...

 

Quote

 

Dozens of sound designers, engineers and mixers have signed a petition protesting the Academy’s decision to award the sound Oscar during its pre-telecast hour on Sunday.

 

A source close to the sound branch also revealed that guild members are planning on wearing their guild badges upside down as a form of silent protest over the demotion of crafts at the Oscars.

 

Karol Urban, President of the Cinema Audio Society confirmed the protest might go one step further. In a statement, Urban said, “This weekend, the Oscars may be turned upside down as we may see winners from all categories accept their Oscars upside down in a silent show of solidarity with the eight affected categories. We are all filmmakers of equal importance.”

 

Oscars: Protest From Sound Editors Over Category Cuts - Variety

 

Think it's safe to say that, regardless of how the reviews and ratings turn out, they're not inviting Packer back. Everything leading up to the telecast has been nothing but controversy.