One of Hollywood’s busiest weeks is grinding to a halt in light of the horrific wildfires spreading rapidly around Los Angeles county. With Oscar voting kicking off Wednesday morning, studios and strategists had a slew of events planned for contenders going into the weekend—screenings, receptions with Q&As, and general opportunities to boost word of mouth among voters. Most of these either have been canceled or soon will be, according to insiders, along with major ceremonies that were primed for A-list attendance: Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards, Saturday’s BAFTA tea, and the prestigious AFI luncheon.
In a Wednesday afternoon letter to Academy members viewed by Vanity Fair, CEO Bill Kramer announced that the voting window for nominations has been expanded by two days, from January 12 to January 14, “to give members more time to cast their ballots.” Accordingly, the previously scheduled nominations announcement for January 17 has been shifted, unusually, to a Sunday, January 19. Key staples of this final round of campaigning, including in-person “bake-offs” for shortlisted sound designers, visual effects artists, and make-up and hair stylists to highlight their work, have been officially canceled, with pivots to digital showcases. The International Feature Film Shortlist Screening has been rescheduled for an unspecified date before voting concludes.
There are several reasons for the mass shifts and cancellations, not least of which is respecting the unsettled, anxious feelings shared by many in the community. Seeking safety, assessing damage, and checking on loved ones is now the priority, rather than watching those last remaining contenders on the docket. The very neighborhoods engulfed in flames happen to be where some of the Academy’s most active members live, including music branch veteran Diane Warren, back in the race this year for her song in Six-Triple Eight, whose home of more than 30 years was destroyed, and recent Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis, who described her terrifying evacuation experience on Instagram. Their peers have shared similar stories. And speaking anecdotally, the fear, anxiety, and mourning happening around town makes Oscar noms feel very distant, even as they’re fast approaching.
“Can’t believe this is happening,” one senior awards strategist told me. Another, who expects all of their Los Angeles Q&As to be canceled through the weekend, said, “It’s awful.”
On Tuesday night, as the Pacific Palisades fire exploded and the Eaton fire on Los Angeles’s east side started taking shape, Sony Pictures Classics canceled what could have been a pivotal event for its Brazilian film, I’m Still Here, to be hosted by CAA in Century City. The film’s star Fernanda Torres had just won a major Golden Globe for best actress, boosting her chances at an Oscar nod among bigger names like Demi Moore and Nicole Kidman, but the planned moderator of the Q&A, Guillermo del Toro, was unable to attend after needing to evacuate his home. The main challenge that international films face in the Oscar race is simply getting voters to prioritize them, and a post-Globes shindig would have brought plenty of new fans to the Walter Salles drama. It’ll now have to hope the Globes momentum transfers to people finding the film on the Academy’s streaming portal, unless a last-minute replacement can be scheduled.
That goes for a lot of smaller movies too. The Last Showgirl just emerged as an Oscars underdog after receiving SAG nominations for stars Pamela Anderson and Jamie Lee Curtis, but its Los Angeles premiere set for Thursday night—a perfectly-timed red carpet moment—was canceled. Focus Features had a Friday event planned for Nosferatu in Santa Monica with director Robert Eggers and star Lily-Rose Depp, hoping to squeeze some awards juice out of the horror film’s box-office success, but abruptly cut plans. A Complete Unknown managed a Q&A with contender Edward Norton in Century City on Tuesday night, just before it dominated the SAG and DGA nominations, but canceled Wednesday’s dinner and screening set at the San Vicente Bungalows. Timothée Chalamet also had three Q&As planned over the weekend, as part of an American Cinematheque career retrospective. We’re awaiting word on the fate of those screenings, which sold out in record time.
Barring an Academy-facilitated boost at the top of next week, this effectively ends Oscar campaigning a week earlier than expected, putting those on the upswing in the tough position of hoping the good buzz can transfer digitally. For now, those on the bubble—films like Nickel Boys, Sing Sing, The Substance, All We Imagine As Light, and A Real Pain, which are battling it out for the final few slots in best picture—are essentially stalled. I’ve heard from strategists on several films in the race who are concerned about how many Academy members have yet to watch their movies, and now that fight to reach voters may be left to a portal free-for-all.
One thing’s for sure: The most unpredictable Oscar race in recent memory shows no signs of slowing down.
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