88th Academy Awards

88th Academy Awards

Official poster
Date February 28, 2016
Site Dolby Theatre
Hollywood, California, U.S.
Host Chris Rock[1]
Producer David Hill
Reginald Hudlin[2]
Director Glenn Weiss
Highlights
Most nominations The Revenant (12)
TV in the United States
Network ABC

The 88th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), will honor the best films of 2015 and is scheduled to take place on February 28, 2016, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST.[3] During the ceremony, AMPAS will present Academy Awards (commonly referred to as Oscars) in 24 categories. The ceremony will be televised in the United States by ABC, and will be produced by David Hill and Reginald Hudlin[4] and directed by Glenn Weiss. Actor Chris Rock will host the show for the second time, having previously hosted the 77th ceremony held in 2005.[5]

In related events, the Academy held its 7th Annual Governors Awards ceremony at the Grand Ballroom of the Hollywood and Highland Center on November 14, 2015.[6] On February 13, 2016, in a ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by hosts Olivia Munn and Jason Segel.[7]

Schedule

Date Event
Saturday, November 14, 2015 The Governors Awards
Wednesday, December 30, 2015 Nominations polls open at 8:00 a.m. PST (05:00, 31 Dec. UTC) (11:00 a.m. EST)
Friday, January 8, 2016 Nominations polls close at 5:00 p.m. PST (01:00, 9 Jan. UTC) (8:00 p.m. EST)
Thursday, January 14, 2016 Nominations announced at 5:30 a.m. PST (13:30 UTC) (8:30 a.m. EST) at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater
Monday, February 8, 2016 Nominees Luncheon
Friday, February 12, 2016 Final voting begins
Saturday, February 13, 2016 Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards presentation
Tuesday, February 23, 2016 Final polls close at 5:00 p.m. PST (01:00, 21 Feb. UTC) (8:00 p.m. EST)
Sunday, February 28, 2016 88th Annual Academy Awards presentation

Winners and nominees

The nominees for the 88th Academy Awards were announced on January 14, 2016, at 5:30 a.m. PST (13:30 UTC), at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California, by directors Guillermo del Toro and Ang Lee, Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs, and actor John Krasinski.[8][9] The Revenant received the most nominations with twelve total, with Mad Max: Fury Road coming in second with ten.[10] For the second consecutive year, a film directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu received the most nominations.

Nominations

Governors Awards

The Academy held its 7th Annual Governors Awards ceremony on November 14, 2015, during which the following awards were presented:[11][12][13]

Academy Honorary Awards
Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

Films with multiple nominations

The following 16 films received multiple nominations:

Nominations Film
12 The Revenant
10 Mad Max: Fury Road
7 The Martian
6 Bridge of Spies
Carol
Spotlight
5 The Big Short
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
4 The Danish Girl
Room
3 Brooklyn
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
2 Ex Machina
Inside Out
Steve Jobs

Presenters and performers

Producers David Hill and Reginald Hudlin announced the following presenters and performers on January 28,[14] February 1,[15] and February 12,[16] 2016, respectively:[17][18]

Ceremony information

Rock at the 2012 premiere ofWhat to Expect When You’re Expecting
Chris Rock will host the 88th Academy Awards.

After the negative reception received from the preceding year's ceremony, Neil Meron and Craig Zadan announced that they would not be returning to produce the show for the fourth year.[19] Shortly afterwards, actor Neil Patrick Harris announced that he would not host the Oscars for a second time. In an interview released from The Huffington Post, he said "I don't know that my family nor my soul could take it. It's a beast. It was fun to check off the list, but for the amount of time spent and the understandable opinionated response, I don't know that it's a delightful balance to do every year or even again."[20] With re-elected Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs assuming leadership duties, the Academy hired David Hill and Reginald Hudlin in September 2015 to produce the ceremony. A day after they were announced as the producers, Hill said that the show would have two hosts.[21]

However in October 2015, it was announced that actor and comedian Chris Rock would be hosting the telecast.[1] They explained why they brought Rock back as host, saying, "Chris Rock is truly the MVP of the entertainment industry. Comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, documentarian — he's done it all. He's going to be a phenomenal Oscar host!"[22] Rock expressed that he was thrilled to be selected to emcee the gala again, commenting, "I'm so glad to be hosting the Oscars, it's great to be back."[23]

Box office performance of nominated films

North American box office gross for Best Picture nominees[24]
Film Pre-nomination
(Before Jan. 15)		 Post-nomination
(Jan. 15-Feb. 28)		 Post-awards
(After Feb. 28)		 Total
The Martian $226 million $1.3 million N/A $228 million
Mad Max: Fury Road $153 million -- -- $153 million
The Revenant $54.1 million $88.4 million N/A $142 million
Bridge of Spies $71.5 million $1.1 million N/A $71.9 million
The Big Short $44.6 million $17.9 million N/A $61.9 million
Spotlight $28.8 million $6.4 million N/A $35.2 million
Brooklyn $22.7 million $8.4 million N/A $31.2 million
Room $5.2 million $5.2 million N/A $10.4 million

The combined gross of the eight Best Picture nominees at the United States and Canadian box offices was $704.2 million, at an average of $88 million which is the sixth-highest of all time in the past 33 years.[25][26] 2015's eight Best Picture nominees were in the second highest average number of theaters per film at 2,323, second only to 2003 where the average theater count per nominee was 2,368. However, the average gross per theater ranks 26th out of the 33 years evaluated with an average of $32,636 per theater.[25]

When the nominations were announced on January 14, 2016, The Martian was the highest-grossing film among the Best Picture nominees with $226.6 million in domestic box office receipts.[25] Mad Max: Fury Road was the second-highest-grossing film with $153.6 million; this was followed by Bridge of Spies ($70.7 million), The Revenant ($54.1 million), The Big Short ($44.6 million), Spotlight ($28.8 million), Brooklyn ($22.7 million), and Room ($5.1 million).[25]

Of the top 50 grossing movies of the year, 46 nominations went to 11 films on the list. Only Inside Out (4th), The Martian (8th), Straight Outta Compton (18th), Mad Max: Fury Road (20th), Creed (28th), Bridge of Spies (42nd), and The Revenant (44th) were nominated for Best Picture, Best Animated Feature, or any of the directing, acting, or screenwriting awards. The other top 50 box office hits that earned nominations were Star Wars: The Force Awakens (1st), Cinderella (9th), Spectre (10th), and Fifty Shades of Grey (16th).

Criticism regarding lack of diversity

Shortly after the nominations were announced, many media outlets observed a lack of diversity amongst the nominees in major categories for the second year running.[27][28][29][30] Shortly after, Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs stated:

"Of course I am disappointed, but this is not to take away the greatness (of the films nominated). This has been a great year in film...However, we are not stopping...We are moving forward and will continue to move forward with conversation and action. That needs to happen not just within the Academy, but the entire motion picture industry.[31]

Isaacs said the Academy is taking "dramatic steps to alter the makeup" of its membership and diversify it in areas of "gender, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation."[32] In response to the lack of diversity, several celebrities including Spike Lee, Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have stated their intention to boycott the ceremony.[33][34] George Clooney,[35] Lupita Nyong'o,[36] Viola Davis[37] and several others actors also commented on the lack of diversity. President Barack Obama also spoke up about the controversy saying,

"I think that California is an example of the incredible diversity of this country...I think that when everyone’s story is told then that makes for better art, it makes for better entertainment it makes everybody feel part of one American family, so I think as a whole the industry should do what every other industry should do which is to look for talent, provide opportunity to everybody. And I think the Oscar debate is really just an expression of this broader issue. Are we making sure that everybody is getting a fair shot?”[38]

In addition, host Chris Rock has also faced pressure to step down as host.[39][40] It was later confirmed that Rock will still host the ceremony and has rewritten his entire opening monologue.[41]

Many celebrities and Academy members, including Michael Caine, Ice Cube, Charlotte Rampling, Whoopi Goldberg, Penelope Ann Miller, Helen Mirren and Gerald Molen voiced their defense of the Oscars citing that the nominations are based on performance and merit not race.[42][43][44][45] Michael Caine stated, "In the end you can’t vote for an actor because he’s black. You can’t say ‘I’m going to vote for him, he’s not very good, but he’s black, I’ll vote for him."[46] Ice Cube, who produced the hit biopic film Straight Outta Compton, stated that "It’s crying about not having enough icing on your cake. It’s just ridiculous.”[47] Penelope Ann Miller responded to the criticism by stating "I voted for a number of black performers, and I was sorry they weren't nominated. To imply that this is because all of us are racists is extremely offensive. I don't want to be lumped into a category of being a racist because I'm certainly not and because I support and benefit from the talent of black people in this business. It was just an incredibly competitive year."[48] Oscar winner and former host, Whoopi Goldberg, defended the Academy as well by saying, “The issue is not the Academy. Even if you fill the Academy with black and Latino and Asian members, if there’s no one on the screen to vote for, you’re not going to get the outcome that you want. I won once, so it can’t be that racist. I’ve been black the whole time."[49] Producer Gerald R. Molen called the idea of a boycott "ridiculous" stating "There is no racism except for those who create an issue,” while adding “That is the worst kind. Using such an ugly way of complaining.”[50] Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren defended the Academy, saying it's "unfair" to criticize the organization over the Oscars' diversity controversy and going on to say “I think it’s unfair to attack the Academy. It just so happened this year, it went that way,"[51]

In January 2016, Academy issued the statement to reform the voting rights and membership rules, by increasing the number of women and minorities in membership, changing lifetime voting rights to a requirement of three ten-year terms of active status in the industry, unless a person has won or been nominated for an Academy Award.[52] Issacs said, "The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up, these new measures regarding governance and voting will have an immediate impact and begin the process of significantly changing our membership composition."[53] The Academy will establish three new governor seats that will be nominated by the Academy President for three-year terms and confirmed by the Board.[54] The Academy will also add new members who are not Governors to its executive and board committees where key decisions about membership and governance are made.[55] However, the Academy's actions also include taking away the membership rights of academy members who have not recently worked in the industry, such as actor Bill Mumy and award-winning screenwriter Patricia Resnick. Resnick stated that "Replacing sexism and racism with ageism is not the answer."[56][45]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Parker, Ryan (October 21, 2015). "It's Official: Chris Rock to Host Oscars". The Hollywood Reporter (Prometheus Global Media). Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  2. ↑ Hammond, Pete (September 1, 2015). "Oscars: David Hill & Reginald Hudlin To Produce 88th Academy Awards". Deadline.com (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  3. ↑ "When Are The Oscars 2016? Start Time and Date for The 88th Academy Awards!". Jim Donnelly (The Academy). 29 January 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  4. ↑ Pedersen, Erik (April 9, 2015). "Oscars: Academy Announces Show Dates For Next Three Years, Dates For 2015–16 Season". Deadline.com (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved May 23, 2015.
  5. ↑ Oldham, Stuart (October 21, 2015). "Chris Rock Confirmed to host The Oscars". Variety (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  6. ↑ Whipp, Glenn (November 15, 2015). "Governors Awards: Academy bestows honors, announces new diversity initiative". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  7. ↑ Sarah, Huggins (January 29, 2016). "Olivia Munn and Jason Segel To Host 2016 Sci-Tech Awards". The Academy (Oscar.org). Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  8. ↑ Coggan, Devan (January 13, 2016). "John Krasinski, Guillermo del Toro, Ang Lee to announce Oscar nominations". Entertainment Weekly (Time Inc.). Retrieved January 11, 2016.
  9. ↑ Ford, Rebecca (January 14, 2016). "Oscar Nominations: The Complete List". The Hollywood Reporter (Prometheus Global Media). Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  10. ↑ Shoard, Catherine; Pulver, Andrew (January 14, 2016). "Oscar nominations 2016: The Revenant leads field, Mad Max in second place". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Spike Lee, Debbie Reynolds And Gena Rowlands To Receive Academy'S 2015 Governors Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. August 27, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  12. ↑ Kilday, Gregg (August 27, 2015). "Spike Lee, Gena Rowlands and Debbie Reynolds to Get Honorary Oscars". The Hollywood Reporter (Prometheus Global Media). Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  13. ↑ Hammond, Pete (August 27, 2015). "Oscars: Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs On Governors Awards Winners’ Reactions – "They Always Take My Call"". Deadline.com (Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  14. ↑ "2016 Oscars Presenters and Performers: First Group Announced". Jim Donnelly. The Academy. January 28, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  15. ↑ "2016 Oscars Presenters and Performers: Second Group Announced". The Academy. February 1, 2016. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  16. ↑ "2016 Oscars Presenters and Performers: Third Group Announced". The Academy. February 12, 2016. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Oscars 2016: expect five minute diversity speech as Quincy Jones confirmed as presenter". The Guardian. February 1, 2016. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Oscars 2016 Presenters and Performers: The Complete List (So Far!)". Jim Donnelly. The Academy. February 3, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  19. ↑ Hammond, Pete (March 26, 2015). "Oscars: Craig Zadan & Neil Meron Not Returning In 2016; Academy Starts New Producer Search". Deadline.com (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  20. ↑ Bradley, Bill (March 4, 2015). "Neil Patrick Harris Doesn't Know If His 'Family Or Soul' Could Take Another Oscars". The Huffington Post (AOL). Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  21. ↑ Breznican, Anthony (September 2, 2015). "Oscars producer says there will be two hosts for next year's ceremony". Entertainment Weekly (Time Inc.). Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  22. ↑ Verhoeven, Beatrice (October 21, 2015). "Chris Rock Confirmed to Host the Oscars". TheWrap. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  23. ↑ "Chris Rock to host 2016 Oscars". BBC News. October 21, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  24. ↑ "2015 Academy Award Nominations and Winner for Best Picture". Box Office Mojo (Amazon.com). Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  25. 1 2 3 4 Brad Brevet (January 15, 2016). "Oscar Box Office: A Look at the 2015 Best Picture Nominees". Box Office Mojo. (Amazon.com). Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  26. ↑ "The Oscar Boost". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  27. ↑ Gray, Tim (January 14, 2016). "Academy Nominates All White Actors for Second Year in Row". Variety (Penske Media Corporation). Retrieved January 18, 2016. Last year’s Oscar nominations drew howls of protests for their lack of diversity. This year, it’s even worse.
  28. ↑ Begley, Sarah (January 14, 2016). "The Oscars Are Very White This Year—Again". Time. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  29. ↑ Hogan, Mike (January 14, 2016). "The Oscars Are Way Too White, Again". Vanity Fair (Condé Nast). Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  30. ↑ Lang, Nico (January 14, 2016). "Oscar snubs that hurt: The Academy Awards still aren’t designed for anyone who isn’t white, straight, and male". Salon. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  31. ↑ Legaspi, Althea (January 15, 2016). "Academy President Addresses Lack of Oscar Diversity". Rolling Stone (Wenner Media). Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  32. ↑ "Academy President Issues Lengthy Statement on Lack of Oscars Diversity". The Hollywood Reporter. January 18, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  33. ↑ McKenzie, Joi-Marie. "Spike Lee, Jada Pinkett Smith to Boycott the 2016 Academy Awards Over Lack of Diversity in Nominations". ABC News. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
  34. ↑ Jones, Kipp. "Will Smith Confirms He’ll Boycott Oscars: ‘Diversity is the American Superpower’". Breitbart News. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  35. ↑ Brucculieri, Julia. "George Clooney Thinks The Oscars Are 'Moving In The Wrong Direction'". The Huffington Post. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  36. ↑ "Lupita Nyong’o ‘Disappointed’ With Lack of Oscar Diversity, Calls for Change". Variety. January 20, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  37. ↑ ""The problem is not with the Oscars, the problem is with the Hollywood movie-making system,”". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  38. ↑ "Obama Weighs in on Oscars Diversity Debate, Super Bowl". ABC News. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  39. ↑ Dziemianowicz, Joe; Sacks, Ethan (January 18, 2016). "Could Chris Rock drop out as Oscars host over increasing calls to boycott Academy Awards?". Daily News. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  40. ↑ Hutchinson, Emily (January 21, 2016). "Tyrese Gibson, 50 Cent Want Chris Rock To Pull Out Of Oscars". The Inquisitr. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  41. ↑ "Chris Rock Still Hosting Oscars; Monologue to Tackle #OscarsSoWhite". Variety. January 23, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  42. ↑ "Viola Davis on Diversity: "Oscars Are a Symptom of a Much Greater Issue"". The Hollywood Reporter. January 21, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  43. ↑ "Charlotte Rampling Clarifies Controversial Diversity Remarks". The New York Times. January 22, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  44. ↑ "Oscar-Winning Producer Denounces "Spoiled Brats" Crying "Racism"". The Hollywood Reporter. January 22, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  45. 1 2 "Oscar Voter Guest Columns". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  46. ↑ "Michael Caine on Oscars: ‘You Can’t Vote for an Actor Because He’s Black’". Variety. January 22, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  47. ↑ Lewis, Hilary (January 22, 2016). "Ice Cube on Oscars: 'You Can't Boycott Something That You Never Went To Anyway'". Billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  48. ↑ Feinberg, Scott (January 20, 2016). "Academy Members Defend Their Oscar Votes: "To Imply We Are Racists Is Extremely Offensive"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  49. ↑ "From Michael Caine to Ice Cube: the best quotes against the entitled brats boycotting the Oscars". The Rebel Media. January 26, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  50. ↑ "Oscar boycott call drives wedge in Hollywood". Fox News. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  51. ↑ Oswald, Anjelica. "Helen Mirren says it's 'unfair' to criticize the Oscars for nominating only white actors". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  52. ↑ Huggins, Sarah (January 26, 2016). "The Academy Introduces Plan to Improve Oscar Diversity". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  53. ↑ "Lifetime voting rights reframed; new governor seats added and committees restructured - Goal to double number of diverse members by 2020". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. January 22, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  54. ↑ Gray, Tim. "Academy Overhauls Membership, Voting Rules to Promote Oscar Diversity". Variety. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  55. ↑ Cox, Jamieson. "The Academy announces goal to 'double number of diverse members' after Oscar backlash". The Verge. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  56. ↑ "Gay Female Oscar Voter to Academy: Don't Kick Me out "to Help You Deal With a Publicity Nightmare". The Hollywood Reporter. January 28, 2016.

External links

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