Below is the full text of the Academy's message to its members.
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The Academy's message to members is below:
Dear Member,
Last night, the Board of Governors met to elect new board officers, and discuss and approve significant changes to the Oscars telecast.
The Board of Governors, staff, Academy members, and various working groups spent the last several months discussing improvements to the show.
Tonight, the Board approved three key changes:
1. A three-hour Oscars telecast
We are committed to producing an entertaining show in three hours, delivering a more accessible Oscars for our viewers worldwide.
To honor all 24 award categories, we will present select categories live, in the Dolby Theatre, during commercial breaks (categories to be determined). The winning moments will then be edited and aired later in the broadcast.
2. New award category
We will create a new category for outstanding achievement in popular film. Eligibility requirements and other key details will be forthcoming.
3. Earlier airdate for 92nd Oscars
The date of the 92nd Oscars telecast will move to Sunday, February 9, 2020, from the previously announced February 23. The date change will not affect awards eligibility dates or the voting process.
The 91st Oscars telecast remains as announced on Sunday, February 24, 2019.
We have heard from many of you about improvements needed to keep the Oscars and our Academy relevant in a changing world. The Board of Governors took this charge seriously.
We are excited about these steps, and look forward to sharing more details with you.
John Bailey and Dawn Hudson
So what does this mean??
1. They're shortening the show.
They're cutting out the boring awards like Best Sound Editing & Best Sound Mixing (why are they different?) to give the watching public what they want. A bumpin' show.
2. They're going to acknowledge the blockbusters.
For years people have talked about the blockbuster, record breaking, smashes and why a movie that could be that popular, couldn't be nominated?
Well the Academy listened and starting in (most likely) 2020 there will be a Best Popular Film award given out to a film like Black Panther or Deadpool 2. With those stars and fan backings, the Academy hopes for and increase in tune-ins.
3. The call time was moved up.
The Oscars has long been known as the finale of awards season. However, that also means that between the Golden Globes and Oscar, actors have to attend many other smaller awards presentations (think People's Choice & Independent Spirit Awards). This causes so much burn out in the community. I mean, if Shape of Water has won Best Picture at all 8 award shows (figurative number*) it's been up for, why even watch The Oscars? You know they're going to win.
As a movie lover and someone who has The Oscars on her calendar from the date it's announced, I'm quite excited for these changes!
Bring on February 9th!