Petition to Reinstate Eight Oscars to Live Telecast Signed by More Than 350 Industry Pros

Will Smith has resigned from Hollywood’s Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences after slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.

Chris Rock did not want Will Smith to be “physically removed” from the ceremony after he stormed the stage to slap the comedian, according to an Oscars show-runner. US film producer Will Packer told Good Morning America that Rock had not wanted to “make a bad situation worse” and that he had spoken to a representative of the Academy on behalf of the stand-up. It comes after the Academy, which organises the Oscars, said that Smith had been asked to leave the ceremony after the star-studded event but had refused.

Forgotten fan favorite? Viewers were left disappointed after the 2022 Academy Awards omitted the late Bob Saget from the In Memoriam segment.

The In Memoriam portion of the Oscars ceremony has been a time-honored tradition to remember those folks we have recently lost that have contributed to the world of cinema. It can be a more somber and sad part of the show, but this year producers attempted to inject a little more energy.

Greig Fraser and editor Joe Walker were among those who spoke out about the Academy’s decision to cut eight categories from the live telecast at Sunday’s Oscars.Earlier this week, dozens of sound designers, engineers and mixers signed a petition challenging the move to award the sound Oscar during its pre-telecast hour on Sunday. As threatened, guild members wore their badges upside down as a form of silent protest.In the press room after winning the cinematography Oscar, Fraser, whose category was shown in main part of the show, said, “Everybody in this crowd realizes why this happens, we understand the economics.

The 94th Oscars celebration has officially kicked off with the official red carpet at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Welcome to Oscars Sunday, and what a relief it is for Oscar watchers everywhere to write those words after yet another elongated season. This year’s Oscars show is a month later than it should be, but if show producer Will Packer has used the extra runway to deliver the Oscars show to end all Oscars shows, well, few seem to have much faith he’ll pull it off. In fact, there’s a real worry that it might be the Oscars show to end the Oscars.

Academy Awards says Sunday’s show will strike a balance between being upbeat and fun, while also acknowledging the war in Ukraine.Producer Will Packer says it’s difficult to put on a show while serious world events are unfolding, but he’s also trying to give people a diversion.“In the midst of the revelry and the fun, we will acknowledge it and then we’re going to try to make sure that we give people who are in tough situations there and around the world something to look at, a release, something that’s upbeat and fun,” Packer told The Associated Press ahead of Sunday’s ceremony.Packer also addressed the film academy’s controversial decision to award eight Oscars ahead of the live telecast and weave them into the broadcast.“We’re going to treat all the honorees with an amazing amount of respect. That’s what we do,” Packer said.Dozens of nominees are already on the Oscars red carpet ahead of the ceremony, which begins at 4 p.m.

Kristen Stewart looked like she stepped off the runway at the 13th Annual Pre-Oscar Awards Dinner hosted by Chanel. The gorgeous star — who’s nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award for her work portraying Princess Diana in Spencer — arrived at the star-studded event on Saturday (March 26) alongside her fiancée Dylan Meyer. Kristen stunned in a black-and-white mini dress with a black leather jacket, as she held hands with her screenwriter partner, who dazzled in a revealing all-black ensemble.

Deadline today confirmed with Oscar telecast producer Will Packer that Josh Brolin and Jason Momoa will present the eight awards that will be, for the first time, handed out before this year’s live telecast instead of during the telecast. The duo had been reported to be in talks to present the segment, but Packer confirmed the final agreement to us at the Governor’s Awards today.

The 94th Oscars airs live on ABC on Sunday, March 27 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT from the Dolby Theater in Hollywood.

After directing multiple episodes of his Netflix series “Master Of None,” including all of season three, comedian Aziz Ansari (“Parks & Rec“) is making his feature film directorial debut for Searchlight Pictures. The film is yet to be titled, but is being referred to for now as “Being Mortal.” Ansari will also take a role in the film alongside Bill Murray, who was previously announced, and now another strong comedic actor has joined the project.

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. The source disclosed that there are discussions exploring the idea of potentially turning their Oscar statues upside down upon receipt at the show, as a way of protesting the Academy’s decision.More than 80 people, including 16 Academy Award winners, signed the letter to the Academy, which is posted in full below.“As a community of sound artists, we respectfully disagree and are opposed to the changes that are being made for the broadcast of the 94th Oscars ceremony,” says the group’s letter to Academy President David Rubin and ABC.

EXCLUSIVE: In what is turning into a cast of comedic hall-of-famers, sources tell Deadline Seth Rogen is set to join Bill Murray in Aziz Ansari’s feature directorial debut Being Mortal. Ansari is also on board to co-star from a script he wrote. He is also producing with Youree Henley.  Taylor Friedman and Cameron Chidsey are overseeing for Searchlight Pictures.

Trevor Noah had quite a scare on his way into Toronto.

Michael Bublé just launched the Apple Music Hits series Higher Radio to mark the release of his first studio album in three years.

In another case of Celebrity Mad-Libs, Mariah Carey texted “Happy Thanksgiving” to Shawn Mendes on accident. This absurdity was too bizarre for Mariah, 52, to keep to herself. “My cousin Shawn M and I have this silly joke where we tell each other ‘Happy Thanksgiving’ on St. Patrick’s Day,” Mariah tweeted in the early hours of Mar. 18, long after the holiday’s festivities. “@ShawnMendes found out about it today…sorry, Shawn!!” ‘