The 2022 Oscars To Air Live On Mediacorp Exclusively On Mar 28
Mediacorp will air the 94th Annual Academy Awards live via meWATCH and Channel 5, Monday (Mar 28), 6am (SG Time), beginning with the red-carpet arrivals, followed by the main ceremony at 8am (SG Time). The event will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
Netflix’s Western epic The Power of the Dog leads the race with 12 nods — including Best Picture, Best Actor (Benedict Cumbebatch), and Best Director (Jane Campion) — followed by Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi extravaganza Dune, with 10 nods and seven each for Kenneth Branagh’s B&W family drama Belfast and Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story remake.
After three hostless years, Hollywood’s Biggest Night will be helmed by not one, not two, but three emcees: Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes. The presenters line-up include Lady Gaga, Kevin Costner, Anthony Hopkins, Lily James, Zoë Kravitz, John Leguizamo, Simu Liu, Rami Malek, Rosie Perez, Chris Rock, Uma Thurman, Youn Yuh-Jung, Woody Harrelson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Samuel L Jackson, Halle Bailey, Daniel Kaluuya, Mila Kunis, Shawn Mendes, Lupita Nyong'o, Tyler Perry, Tracee Ellis Ross, Naomi Scott, Wesley Snipes and John Travolta.
To reinvigorate declining viewership — last year’s show was watched by just over 10 million viewers, a 56 per cent drop from 2020 — Oscars organiser Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences introduced a “fan favourite” category for the year’s most popular film as voted by Twitter users (in the US only). Last time we checked, Spider-Man: No Way Home, 2021’s highest-grossing film, is leading the polls.
This fan-centric category isn’t entirely new: In 2018, the show producers proposed and later shelved a “popular film” award to honour more commercially mainstream movies such as the Marvel flicks.
In another ratings-boosting move, the Academy plans to pre-record eight categories (out of 23) prior to the live-cast, airing edited versions of their presentations during prime-time. The awards affected: Documentary Short, Film Editing, Makeup/Hairstyling, Original Score, Production Design, Animated Short, Live Action Short, and Sound.
The decision to make the ceremony more broadcast-friendly (read: less boring) didn’t go down well from the industry, sparking petitions and even resignations from the Academy.
Other highlights to look out for: a tribute to 60 years of the James Bond movie franchise (will Daniel Craig’s successor be revealed shortly?), a celebration of The Godfather for its 50th anniversary, and the first live performance of Encanto’s ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’.
At press time, Beyonce is in talks to perform ‘Be Alive’, her Oscar-nominated song from King Richard, live from tennis courts in Compton, California.
Click here for the complete list of nominations.
Photo: TPG News/Click Photos
