As dangerous wildfires have devastated neighborhoods across Los Angeles, an incendiary debate has played out on the outskirts of fire containment lines: Should the Oscars be canceled this year?
While celebrities including Stephen King, Jean Smart and Rosanna Arquette have voiced concerns about if or how the ceremony should move forward as fires still burn, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has taken a firm stance: The show must go on.
Earlier this week, the organization stated that despite some calls to roll up the red carpet, it was determined to keep the Oscars on track for Sunday, March 2, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.
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“After consultation with ABC, our board, and other key stakeholders in the Los Angeles and film communities, we have made the carefully considered decision to proceed with the 97th Oscars ceremony as planned on March 2,” academy chief executive officer Bill Kramer told the Los Angeles Times in a statement published Jan. 15.
As of now, thousands of structures have been destroyed and at least 27 people have died as a result of fires in Altadena, Malibu and Pacific Palisades. Focusing on a ceremony that spotlights wealthy stars and the “glitz” of the red carpet could potentially be seen as tone-deaf, some celebrities have argued.
On Bluesky, King posted that he’s “not voting in the Oscars this year. [In my honest opinion] they should cancel them. No glitz with Los Angeles on fire.”
However, in this case, those fires have hit many of the very people the ceremony is scheduled to celebrate — and not just the wealthy ones.
Kramer acknowledged as much, adding, “We feel that we must go forward to support our film community and to use our global platform to bring attention to these critical moments in our history.”
Given the economic hit Hollywood has taken over the past five years — from a global pandemic that saw theaters close to dual writers’ and actors’ strikes that halted production on scores of films and TV shows — everyone from A-listers to production assistants and “gig” workers have felt the financial pinch.
Moving ahead with the ceremony, Mary McNamara from the Los Angeles Times argued, not only shows support for blockbuster and indie films alike that are being recognized, but it also provides an economic boost to those essential to Hollywood but who also don’t typically see the spotlight — think Carolina from craft services who got a shout-out from The Penguin actor Colin Farrell in his Golden Globes acceptance speech.
“The fires are only the latest blow to many already struggling to find work, make the rent, feed the kids,” she wrote, noting that it takes roughly 1,000 people “not counting presenters and guests” to make the Academy Awards happen.
Not only that, but the Oscars have never missed a year — not even during World War II or after 9/11 — although they have been delayed or rescheduled at various points during their 94-year history.
That’s not to say that everything will be business as usual for the celebrations.
Kramer also noted that, like the Grammy Awards, which is still moving ahead with its Feb. 2 ceremony at Crypto.com Arena in L.A., this year’s awards show will honor first responders and include “special moments acknowledging those who fought so bravely against the wildfires.”
As planning for the event is still coming together while the academy monitors “the situation closely” and with Conan O’Brien still scheduled to host, celebrities like Arquette and Hacks star Smart are asking organizers to donate to or raise funds for those displaced by the fires, with Smart going a step further.
Calling on the academy (including a board of governors, four of whom as well as a former CEO have lost their homes in the fires) to drop the telecast altogether, Smart said in an Instagram post, “I hope any of the networks televising the upcoming awards will seriously consider NOT televising them and donating the revenue they would have garnered to victims of the fires and the firefighters.”
Some commenters pointed out that televising the ceremony brings in vital advertising dollars that could go toward victims. Others noted how people who count on these ceremonies to make a living could suffer in the process.
“Award season provides essential work for so many — makeup artists, drivers, stylists, riggers, and countless others behind the scenes. Rather than canceling these events, perhaps we can find ways to both raise funds and awareness while keeping the industry going,” makeup artist Benjamin Puckey wrote in a comment on the post.
Similarly, Arquette wrote on Instagram that the Oscars should be turned into the “greatest telethon in the world,” according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The Recording Academy has already pledged to raise money during its Grammys telecast in addition to its initial $1 million donation to fire-relief efforts.
While the academy has already postponed its Oscar nominations announcement and canceled its annual nominees luncheon (donating those funds instead to wildfire relief), the show itself is reportedly moving forward, with multiple calls for raising money echoing throughout Los Angeles and beyond.
What Hollywood is often criticized for — the glam celebration of movies and TV — is arguably part of what is getting this town through this moment. Celebrating an industry that pumped roughly $43 billion into the California economy in 2023, some argue, shows the ongoing dedication to a vital local resource.
For Kramer and many others it’s also about fortitude. The “spirit of Los Angeles and our film community has always been one of resilience,” he said in the statement, “and the Oscars represent not just a celebration of film, but the industry’s strength and unity in the face of adversity.”
