Despite a night of historic firsts and a major upset in the best actor category, the 93rd Academy Awards could not avoid the TV ratings slide that has hit all award shows during the pandemic.
ABC's telecast of the Oscars hit an all-time low with an average of 9.85 million viewers watching on Sunday, a drop of 58% from last year, according to Nielsen. The previous low was in 2020 with 23.6 million viewers.
Oscar telecast producers Steven Soderbergh, Stacy Sher and Jessie Collins were up against the same obstacles faced by other awards shows that experienced similar ratings declines. The Golden Globe Awards (6.9 million viewers on NBC) and the Grammy Awards (8.8 million viewers on CBS) both saw year-to-year audience decreases of more than 50%.
The Oscars show aired nearly two months later than it has in recent years and the live audience in attendance was limited, with fewer than 200 participants seated in a banquet-like setting at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles. With limited exposure in movie theaters that were mostly closed over the last year, many TV viewers were unfamiliar with the nominated films, which may explain why clips were used less than usual.
The show proceeded without a host. The only one comedy bit occurred when actor Lil Rel Howery quizzed Oscars attendees on famous film music played by DJ Questlove. Best actress nominee Glenn Close played along with her performance of "Da Butt" from Spike Lee's "School Daze."
But for the most part, the introductions were earnest and lacked the humor and irony that were once trademarks of Hollywood award shows. A lengthy segment on the Motion Picture & Television Fund had the feeling of a fundraising telethon.
While there is anecdotal evidence that viewers are turned off by social justice speeches at show business awards shows, the Oscar winners and presenters did not shy away from referencing the police murder of George Floyd. Former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin was convicted for Floyd's May 25, 2020, death last week.
"We are mourning the loss of so many, and I have to be honest, if things had gone differently this past week in Minneapolis I may have traded in my heels for marching boots," Regina King, the nominated director for "One Night in Miami," said at the outset of the show.
The Oscars telecast had a major twist in presenting the award for best film — traditionally the last trophy given out — before the actress and actor categories. The last time the telecast did not end with the best picture award was in 1972, when the winner was "The French Connection."
The switch may have been an attempt to keep viewers hooked to the end of the telecast. Best film winner "Nomadland" was considered a foregone conclusion based on its sweep of other awards, including the Golden Globes and BAFTA. Viewers may have anticipated a warm tribute to Chadwick Boseman, the late actor who was expected to be posthumously honored for his performance in "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom."
But Boseman lost in a stunning upset to Anthony Hopkins, for his performance as an elderly dementia sufferer in "The Father." Hopkins was not present at the ceremony, which ended with a still image of him.
According to a representative for the film, Hopkins, 83, was in his native Wales. In order to avoid the risk of being exposed to the coronavirus, he did not travel to the British Film Institute in London, where other nominees accepted awards. The show's production team insisted on in-person acceptance speeches to avoid the use of Zoom calls that diminished the production standards of other award shows.
The category switch may have given a slight boost to the rating. Nielsen measures the audience for the Oscars through the last national commercial break, which came before the acting categories were presented. It gave the program an unusually early end time of 11:10 p.m. ET. Once the Oscars go past 11 p.m, the telecast is competing with bedtimes in most of the country.
Those who stayed up saw history made as Hopkins was the oldest lead actor winner in history, one of several Oscar landmarks set that night.
Chloe Zhao was the first woman of color to win a best director trophy for her work on "Nomadland." "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" costume designer Ann Roth, 89, became the oldest woman to win an Oscar. "Minari" star Yuh-Jung Youn became the first Korean to win for lead actress.
