OSCARS
The Oscars made the announcement on Monday, March 17: Comedian Conan O’Brien, who had earned top marks for hosting the 2025 Oscars, would be returning as host of the 2026 Oscars on Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Most of us focused on the host announcement, which was made far earlier in the year than is typical, but Murphy Reinschreiber, COO of the McCourt Foundation, which operates the L.A. Marathon, immediately zeroed in the date, which was the same as the already-announced date of the 2026 L.A. Marathon, which is typically held on the third Sunday in March.
The McCourt Foundation had announced its 2026 marathon date on March 15, one day before the 2025 marathon and two days before the Oscars made their announcement.
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Reinschreiber was driving home after finishing work on this year’s marathon when he learned of the double booking.
“It was confusing and the other thought that went to my mind is there are just no days off in this business,” he told The Los Angeles Times. “It’s one thing after the other.”
It would be virtually impossible to have both megaevents on the same date. The Oscars is held at the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Blvd., which is right along the marathon route. Both events require significant road closures and law enforcement deployment.
After six weeks of uncertainty, a solution was finally reached on Thursday (May 1): The 98th Oscars will be held as originally scheduled. The McCourt Foundation will announce a new March date for the race in the coming days.
Both parties also agreed that, to avoid future date conflicts, the L.A. Marathon will take place on the third Sunday in March (on which it has often but not always been held in recent years), and the Oscars will steer clear of that date. (Though the Oscars are often right around this date, this was the first time the Oscars landed on the third Sunday in March since 1999.)
Moving a marathon is no easy feat. The event spans a large chunk of the city and involves more than 25,000 runners, thousands of volunteers, medical personnel, law enforcement and city workers.
“The number of people, communities and businesses that are all impacted by a change of date is mind-boggling,” Reinschreiber told the L.A. Times. “We are going to have to undergo a significant community awareness program.”
More than 5,000 people have registered for the 2026 Marathon, and they will need to be offered the option of a refund due to the change in date, he said.
Who in city government wasn’t on top of things and allowed two megaevents to be scheduled for the same date? No one is saying.
With this conflict resolved, it’s official: The 2026 Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 15 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. It’s the third year in a row that the telecast will start at 4 p.m. on the West Coast — in an effort to make it so that East Coast viewers can find out who wins the biggest awards before they go to bed. (This year’s show ended at 10:50 p.m. ET, making that goal a reality for all but the earliest risers.)
The show will again be held at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Theater in Hollywood, its home base for every year but one since 2002. (The best-forgotten 2021 pandemic show was held at the Union Station in downtown L.A.)
Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan will return as the show’s executive producers for the third consecutive year. They first served in that capacity in 2024, when Kimmel hosted. They each won Primetime Emmys for outstanding variety special (live) for that show. Kapoor had previously won for outstanding variety special (pre-recorded) for his work on Adele: One Night Only.
Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney will return as producers for a second time. Sweeney will also serve as a writer. Sweeney has won three Primetime Emmys for previous productions with O’Brien. Ross has won one.
Hoping to be nominated for an Oscar in one of the music categories next year? Listen up. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences on Monday (April 21) announced key dates and various procedural changes for the 2026 Oscars, which included separate, significantly earlier submission deadlines in the two music categories.
Submissions for best original song must be made by Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 5 p.m. PT. Submissions for best original score are due no later than Monday, Nov. 3, at 5 p.m. PT. Last year, the submission deadline in both categories was the same as for general entry categories — Nov. 14, 2024.
This was one of many changes approved by the academy’s board of governors and announced on Monday.
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In the rules for film eligibility, the following language regarding generative artificial intelligence has been introduced, as recommended by the Academy’s Science and Technology Council: “With regard to generative artificial intelligence and other digital tools used in the making of the film, the tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination. The academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award.”
In a procedural change, academy members must now watch all nominated films in each category to be eligible to vote in the final round for the Oscars. All designated nominees will also be included on the final ballot.
Other substantive awards rules changes include:
For consideration in the best picture category, films released from Jan. 1 through June 30 must have shown proof of submission for Producers Guild of America mark certification or awards-only determination no later than Sept. 10. Films released from July 1 through Dec. 31 must have shown proof of submission to the PGA no later than Nov. 13.
In the international feature film category, the eligibility requirement regarding creative control has been updated to be inclusive of filmmakers with refugee or asylum status. The submitting country must confirm that creative control of the film was largely in the hands of citizens, residents or individuals with refugee or asylum status in the submitting country.
Category rules for eligibility and voting for the inaugural Academy Award for achievement in casting have been codified. There will be a preliminary round of voting to determine a shortlist of 10 films, and prior to nominations voting, casting directors branch members will be invited to view a “bake-off” presentation of the shortlisted achievements, including a Q&A with the designated nominees.
In the animated short film category, voting privileges in the nominations round will be extended to all academy members who opt in to participate. Members must view all 15 shortlisted films to be eligible to vote in the category.
In the cinematography category, there will now be a preliminary round of voting for the cinematography award to determine a shortlist of between 10 and 20 films.
The academy also updated and clarified formatting and language in the campaign promotional regulations for the 98th Oscars. The campaign promotional regulations specify how motion picture companies and individuals directly associated with Oscars-eligible motion pictures may promote such motion pictures, achievements and performances to academy members and how academy members may promote Oscars-eligible motion pictures, achievements and performances.
Substantive changes to the campaign promotional regulations include:
Public communications (including any social media posts, reposts, shares and comments) may not disparage the techniques used in or subject matter of any motion picture. Any academy member, motion picture company or individual directly associated with an eligible motion picture found to be in violation will be subject to penalization.
As previously announced, the 98th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Conan O’Brien will host for the second year in a row. Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan will return as the show’s executive producers for the third consecutive year. Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney will return as producers for a second time. Sweeney will also serve as a writer.
It will also be the third year in a row that the telecast will start at 4 p.m. on the West Coast, in an effort to make it so that East Coast viewers can find out who wins the biggest awards before they go to bed. (This year’s show ended at 10:50 p.m. ET, making that goal a reality for all but the earliest risers.)
The academy stresses that all rules and dates for the 98th Academy Awards are subject to change. For the complete 98th Academy Awards rules and campaign promotional regulations, visit the academy’s website.
Key dates for the 2025 Oscars season are as follows:
First submission deadline for animated short film, documentary feature film, documentary short film and live action short film categories: Thursday, Aug. 14
First submission deadline for general entry categories, animated feature film, best picture and RAISE form: Wednesday, Sept. 10
Submission deadline for international feature film: Wednesday, Oct. 1
Student Academy Awards: Monday, Oct. 6
Final submission deadline for animated short film, documentary short film and live action short film categories: Thursday, Oct. 9
Submission deadline for music (original song): Wednesday, Oct. 15
Final submission deadline for documentary feature film: Thursday, Oct. 16
Submission deadline for music (original score): Monday, Nov. 3
Final submission deadline for general entry categories, animated feature film, best picture and RAISE form: Thursday, Nov. 13
Governors Awards: Sunday, Nov. 16
Preliminary voting begins 9 a.m. PT: Monday, Dec. 8
Preliminary voting ends 5 p.m. PT: Friday, Dec. 12
Oscars shortlists announcement: Tuesday, Dec. 16
Casting, makeup and hairstyling, sound and visual effects nominating screenings (bake-offs): Sat. Jan. 10/Sun. Jan. 11, 2026
Nominations voting begins: Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, at 9 a.m. PT
Nominations voting ends: Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, at 5 p.m. PT
Oscars nominations announcement: Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026
Oscars nominees event: Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026
Finals voting begins: Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at 9 a.m. PT
Finals voting ends: Thursday, March 5, 2026, at 5 p.m. PT
98th Oscars: Sunday,March 15, 2026
Scientific and technical awards: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Benny Blanco is just as confused as others are about having been mixed up with Bad Bunny at the 2025 Oscars.
About a month after a photo of himself and his superstar fiancée walking the red carpet at this year’s awards was mistakenly captioned “Selena Gomez and Bad Bunny” on The Academy’s official X account, the producer swung by The Jennifer Hudson Show Monday (April 7) and revealed that he had no idea the snafu occurred — but he isn’t complaining.
“They did?” he replied incredulously when Jennifer Hudson informed him that he’d been confused for the Puerto Rican superstar. (The post was quickly edited to correctly state Blanco’s name, though screenshots and replies immortalize the hilarious oopsie.)
“I like that,” the “Eastside” musician continued, laughing. “What do you mean? He’s so hot! I’ll take it, I’ll take it. What do you mean?”
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“Look at how pretty he is — are you kidding?” Blanco added, looking at a photo of the “Titi Me Pregunto” displayed behind him. “Yeah, I’m Bad Bunny now.”
The producer’s visit to the talk show comes just a couple weeks after the March 21 release of his and Gomez’s joint album, I Said I Love You First, which recently debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The couple attended the 2025 Oscars together earlier that month in honor of Emilia Pérez, in which the Only Murders in the Building actress starred. The film had received 13 nominations, including best picture, which ultimately went to Anora.
Of attending the ceremony, Blanco told Hudson, “Every woman deserves a Purple Heart for going — you guys gotta get ready, it’s so much, it’s so long.”
“That dress weighed 35 pounds!” the hitmaker added, pointing to a phot of himself and Gomez on the red carpet. “And when we were traveling there, she couldn’t sit down — she had to stand up in the car, and a man is sewing her in!”
Speaking of fancy occasions, Blanco also shared the special celebration he planned for his 37th birthday last month. “Selena had never been to a prom before, so I thought I’d throw us a prom for my birthday,” he said, smiling. “She didn’t even know. She was like, ‘What am I supposed to wear? What am I supposed to do?’ It was like she was really going to prom. I got her a little corsage.”
Watch a clip of Blanco’s Jennifer Hudson Show interview above.
Chris Hemsworth is a music fan, just like the rest of us. So much so, that he once asked for a selfie with a major pop star. The Avengers actor joined The Late Show With Stephen Colbert this week, where he answered a series of deep-dive questions to get to know him better. One of […]
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According to reports, Hamdan Ballal, the Palestinian co-director of the Academy Award-winning documentary film No Other Land was assaulted by Israeli settlers near his home village in the West Bank on Monday (March 24). In a post on X, formerly Twitter, his co-director Yuval Abraham detailed what happened: “A group of settlers just lynched Hamdan Ballal, co-director of our film No Other Land. They beat him and he has injuries in his head and stomach, bleeding. Soldiers invaded the ambulance he called and took him. No sign of him since.”
https://twitter.com/yuval_abraham/status/1904235552620339365
According to AP News, Palestinian residents of the village of Susya confronted a settler who approached their homes during the breaking of their Ramadan fast and asked them to leave. More settlers arrived, smashing car windows and damaging infrastructure on top of attacking villagers. Soldiers then detained Ballal after a settler beat him in front of his home, according to his wife, Lamia. According to Abraham, the same setter threatened Ballal in April, which was captured on video. “This is my land, I was given it by God,” the settler says in the video, shouting profanity and goading Ballal into trying to fight him. “Next time it won’t be nice,” the settler says.
Ballal was released Tuesday (March 25) from a police station in the Kiryat Arba settlement. “All my body is pain,” he said to the Associated Press. “I heard the voices of the soldiers, they were laughing about me … I heard ‘Oscar’ but I didn’t speak Hebrew.” He revealed he was held at an army base and forced to sleep under an ongoing air conditioner while blindfolded.
Ballal is one of four directors of the documentary along with Abraham, who is Israeli. No Other Land covers the struggles of Palestinians living in Israel under daily oppression. Another one of the directors, Palestinian activist Basel Adra, confirmed that since the Oscar win, settlers and Israeli soldiers have increased their attacks. “We’re living in dark days here, in Gaza, and all of the West Bank,” Adra said, adding, “Nobody’s stopping this.” No Other Land has been under attack since its win at the 97th Academy Awards, with Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner voicing intent to end the lease of a cinema planning to show the film claiming it wasn’t a balanced view. Local opposition forced him to back off from the move.
The 2022 Academy Awards served as the ultimate rollercoaster ride of emotions for Will Smith, who won best actor honors for his role in King Richard, but also delivered the infamous slap across host Chris Rock’s face on stage for jokes made about his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith.
The actor-rapper received a 10-year ban from the Oscars, and had the option to appeal. The Associated Press caught up with Smith on Monday (March 24), during which he reflected on his actions and explained how he’s planning to move forward.
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“I am looking to be the best human I can possibly be, and I’m gonna take what I get with that,” the 56-year-old said.
Smith has since resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and has been apologetic to Rock for slapping him onstage following a G.I. Jane joke about Pinkett-Smith.
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris,” Smith wrote in 2022. “I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be.”
Rock hasn’t been open to speaking with Smith yet, but didn’t rule out returning as host for the Oscars at some point in the future.
“You never know. This is what I would say, the most miserable people on earth are people that can’t forgive,” the comedian said earlier in March. “And not just people, you have to forgive yourself sometimes, too. So, hey, you never know.”
On the music side, Smith is returning with his first album in 20 years, Based On a True Story. The LP arrives on Friday (March 28), and he’ll be hitting the road this summer for a tour across Europe and the U.K.
“A well opened up inside of me, a well of understanding of art and pain … all kinds of things that I didn’t even know were in there,” Smith told Billboard in January of his rejuvenated hunger for music. “Then after the Oscars, that spiritual investigation continued and a whole world woke up inside that I didn’t even know was there.”
Watch Will Smith talk about his Oscar ban below.
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Will Smith is more than likely never going to live down the infamous Oscars moment in 2022 when he approached host Chris Rock and delivered a slap heard around the world. In the years since, Will Smith has refocused on his acting craft and continued introspection, and in a new interview, he talks about that journey ahead of his new studio album.
Will Smith sat down with the Associated Press to discuss his upcoming fifth studio album, Based On A True Story, his creative aims for the year, and so much more. The article opens up with Smith, 56, explaining the focus and aims of the album while also using the project as a way of sharing with the world his path and the way ahead after the controversial Oscars moment when he slapped Chris Rock in 2022.
“I’ve taken the last couple of years to really do a deep dive on the parts of me that may or may not been in that level of certainty and asking those deep scary internal questions,” Smith explains.
Smith added, “It really is the result of my initial self-examination. Every song is about some part of myself that I discovered or wanted to explore, something I wanted to share. It’s the most full musical offering that I’ve ever created.”
Of course, the topic of Smith’s 10-year ban from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences could not be avoided, and he’s clearly shown remorse by way of apologizing to Rock via an open letter and video, which appears to still have gone unanswered in many respects. When asked if he would appeal the academy’s ban, Smith gave an answer that illustrates that he’s hoping to move on beyond the slap heard around the world.
“I am looking to be the best human I can possibly be, and I’m gonna take what I get with that,” Smith said.
Will Smith’s Based On A True Story drops this Friday (March 28) and is said to be the first of three albums the Philadelphia native intends to drop this year. He is also working on several film and television projects, including a sequel to the superhero action film, Hancock.
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Well, that was fast. Just two weeks after Conan O’Brien hosted the Oscars for the first time, the Motion Picture Academy announced that he will be back to host the 2026 show. O’Brien is the first first-time host to host again the following year since Jimmy Kimmel in 2017-18.
“The only reason I’m hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech,” O’Brien said with characteristic dry wit. (The best actor winner set a new record for the longest acceptance speech – it clocked in at 5:36 – in Oscar history.)
It can’t be a coincidence that the Oscars chose to make the announcement on St. Patrick’s Day. O’Brien was famously raised in an Irish Catholic family. The host announcement is much earlier in the year than normal, a strong vote of confidence in the new host. Last year, the Academy announced O’Brien as host on Nov. 15. O’Brien’s success as an Oscars host makes up for his bumpy, eight-month run as host of another legendary franchise, The Tonight Show, in 2009-10.
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O’Brien, 61, has won five Primetime Emmys. He is set to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on March 23.
Last week, the Golden Globes made a similarly early announcement that they are bringing back first-time host Nikki Glaser to host their 2026 show.
The 2025 Oscars, held on March 2, delivered a five-year high in both total viewers (19.69 million) and adults 18-49 (4.54 rating) and ranked as the No. 1 primetime entertainment telecast in both total viewers and adults for the 2024-25 season. The show earned 104.2 million total social interactions, ranking as the No. 1 most social TV program for the season to date, outperforming both The Grammy Awards (102.2 million interactions) and The Super Bowl (62.4 million) this season for the first time on record.
The 2026 Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 15 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. It’s the third year in a row that the telecast will start at 4 p.m. on the West Coast – in an effort to make it so that East Coast viewers can find out who wins the biggest awards before they go to bed. (This year’s show ended at 10:50 p.m. ET, making that goal a reality for all but the earliest risers.)
The show has aired on ABC every year since 1976, when that network took over from NBC, which had aired it in the five previous years. The Academy’s current deal with ABC, signed in 2016, allows it to televise the show through 2028, which will be the year of the show’s 100th anniversary.
An Academy statement did not mention Hulu, which livestreamed the show this year for the first time. Technical glitches marred the livestream.
The show will again be held at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Theater in Hollywood, its home base for every year but one since 2002. (The best-forgotten 2021 pandemic show was held at the Union Station in downtown L.A.)
Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan will return as the show’s executive producers for the third consecutive year. They first served in that capacity in 2024, when Kimmel hosted. They each won Primetime Emmys for outstanding variety special (live) for that show. Kapoor had previously won for outstanding variety special (pre-recorded) for his work on Adele: One Night Only.
“We are both so honored to be returning in our roles for the 98th Oscars,” Kapoor and Mullan said in a joint statement. “We can’t wait to work with Conan and his entire team as we continue to explore even more special and heartfelt opportunities to celebrate next year’s nominees and the impact of film around the world.”
Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney will return as producers for a second time. Sweeney will also serve as a writer. Sweeney has won three Primetime Emmys for previous productions with O’Brien. Ross has won one.
“We are thrilled to bring back Conan, Raj, Katy, Jeff and Mike for the 98th Oscars!” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and president Janet Yang in a joint statement. “This year, they produced a hugely entertaining and visually stunning show that celebrated our nominees and the global film community in the most beautiful and impactful way. Conan was the perfect host – skillfully guiding us through the evening with humor, warmth and reverence. It is an honor to be working with them again.”
Acclaimed composer Hans Zimmer has reflected on his inability to add another Academy Award to his shelf thanks to Dune: Part Two, noting his disqualification was simply due to a “a stupid rule.”
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The German composer has spent more than 35 years working on crafting scores for Hollywood films, with his efforts resulting in two Academy Awards for his efforts. From 12 nominations at the Oscars, Zimmer has taken home the best original score award just twice, once in 1995 for The Lion King, and again in 2022 for his work on Dune.
With director Denis Villeneuve releasing Dune: Part Two in March 2024, many fans could have expected Zimmer to add another feather to his cap thanks to the nascent entry in the franchise. However, in October, Variety reported that Zimmer’s score for the film was deemed ineligible for submission to the Academy Awards due to “surpassing the Academy’s limit on pre-existing music.”
According to the Academy’s rule: “In cases such as sequels and franchises from any media, the score must not use more than 20% of pre-existing themes and music borrowed from previous scores in the franchise.” Due to Zimmer’s score for Dune: Part Two incorporating elements and key cues from the Oscar-winning score to 2021’s Dune, it was therefore deemed ineligible for submission.
Though Villeneuve and the film’s team were undeterred in their efforts for Zimmer to be recognized for his work, the score was ultimately disqualified and did not appear on the ballot for consideration. The film did however receive a total of five nominations, taking home best sound and best visual effects at the ceremony on March 2.
In a new interview with the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Zimmer reflected on the small controversy when host Josh Horowitz asked if the disqualification was a “sore point” for the composer.
“It’s not really a sore point. It’s just such a stupid point – how can it be a sore point?” Zimmer asked. “I got disqualified because I was using material from the first movie in the second movie, but it’s not a sequel. It is the completion of the arc, both movies are one arc.
“So was I supposed to go and take all the character themes away and write new character themes and develop them?” he added. “It’s just a stupid rule. What I didn’t want to do is go and bitch about it.”
Zimmer’s recent comments also continue on from what he told Variety back in October, stating his belief that Dune: Part Two is simply a continuation of the narrative begun in the first film.
“It’s called Dune: Part Two, not Dune 2,” he explained. “The story starts the second we finish the first movie. We are still within that story, those characters, and it would be foolish and completely uncinematic to go and write new themes for the characters instead of enlarging the theme.”
Zimmer is planning to return for Villeneuve’s next film in the series, with Dune: Messiah reportedly set to begin filming in mid-2025.
Well, here’s a surprise: The audience for the Oscar telecast on Sunday (March 2), where indie film darling Anora led with five awards, showed a slight uptick from last year, when two certified blockbusters, Oppenheimer and Barbie, went head-to-head for best picture. Updated Nielsen data released Tuesday showed that the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre […]