Report: Academy Considers Postponing 2021 Oscars

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – The Academy is considering postponing the 2021 Oscar ceremony due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report Tuesday.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) is considering several options, such as pushing the date of the ceremony back, several sources told Variety.

However, no formal proposals have yet been made.

With nearly all theaters across the nation shuttered, the Academy last month took the unprecedented step of announcing that streaming-only movies would be eligible to qualify for the 2021 Oscars.

In order to qualify for a nomination, however, a film must have had a previously planned theatrical release in Los Angeles County that was preempted by the movie theater closures.

The change is temporary, though, and once theaters reopen, studios that want their films to be eligible will once again have to release them into theaters for at least seven days, but not necessarily within L.A. County. The Academy will expand the number of qualifying theaters to include the Bay Area, New York City, Chicago, Miami and Atlanta.

The 93rd Academy Awards are currently scheduled for Feb. 28.