May 2, 2025/Midnight
Erie, PA. – The recent policy changes reveal that Oscar voters can no longer skip watching some of the nominated films before casting their votes.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that members will be required to watch all nominated films in each category to be eligible to vote in the final round of Oscar voting. Up until now, Oscar voters had only been encouraged, not mandated, to watch the nominees and vote in categories they felt qualified.
How the Academy picks its nominees has long been perceived as a mysterious process. In recent years, what films get watched by academy members has been increasingly seen as a significant factor in determining winners. Anonymous voters have confessed that they didn’t watch some notable films or finish longer movies. In February, four Oscar voters admitted to Entertainment Weekly that they did not watch “Dune: Part Two” and left it off their Best Picture ballot. According to the report, a casting director states that they’re “not rushing for another three hours of Dune.”
In another instance, two separate Oscar voters have admitted they did not vote for Ralph Fiennes to win an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role as they wrongly believed he “had won before.” In fact, Fiennes has never won any Oscars despite being nominated three times. Considering how the academy voters are expected to watch all the nominated films and carefully consider all the nominees, these revelations have brought some shocks and outrage.
The academy also mentions new regulations, including the role of AI, refugee filmmakers and the newly launched casting category.
In the Best International Film category, the Academy will now allow filmmakers with refugee or asylum status to be represented by a country other than their own. While the submission process, managed by individual countries, remains in place, the eligibility criteria have been revised.
“The submitting country must confirm that creative control of the film was largely in the hands of citizens, residents, or individuals with refugee or asylum status in the submitting country,” the academy states.
Critics have long called for changes to the nominating process for Best International Film, as it leaves submission decisions in the hands of governments. As a result, filmmakers working under undemocratic regimes have limited pathways to reach the Oscars.
The academy also states that generative artificial intelligence tools (AI) will “neither help nor harm the chances of a nomination.” The impact of AI in filmmaking and other creative industries has surged as a heated topic. Recently, The Brutalist, directed by Brady Corbet, sparked controversy after its editor revealed that AI had been used to enhance the Hungarian dialogue of Adrien Brody (who won Best Actor) and Felicity Jones (who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress).
“The Academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award,” the Academy said.
The Oscars will introduce a new award for Achievement in Casting, starting with the 98th Academy Awards for films released in 2025. After a preliminary round of voting to determine a shortlist of 10 films, members of the casting branch will be invited to a “bake-off” presentation of the shortlisted films, including a Q&A with the nominees.
The Academy has confirmed a new Oscar for stunt design, which will debut at the 2028 ceremony.
The 98th Academy Awards are scheduled for March 15, 2026, with Conan O’Brien returning as host for the ABC telecast.
