The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the ABC Television Network has announced that the 93rd Oscars ceremony will move to Sunday, April 25, 2021, as a result of the global pandemic caused by COVID-19. The show, which will air live on ABC, was originally scheduled for February 28, 2021.
Coinciding with the Oscars celebration, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, initially scheduled to open to the public on December 14, 2020, will now open on April 30, 2021, also as a result of the health crisis.
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano and featuring six floors of exhibition spaces, education and special event spaces, a conservation studio, a restaurant, a museum store, the 1,000-seat David Geffen Theater and the 288-seat Ted Mann Theater, will move its opening to April 30, 2021.
Dates also have shifted for the Academy Awards eligibility period, submission deadlines and related awards season events. The eligibility period for Academy Awards consideration has been extended beyond the standard December 31 deadline: a feature film must now have a qualifying release date between January 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021.
The submission deadline for specialty categories (Animated Feature Film, Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, International Feature Film, Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film) is December 1, 2020. The submission deadline for general entry categories, including Best Picture, Original Score and Original Song, is now January 15, 2021.
The intent going forward is to ultimately return to awarding excellence for films released in the January-December calendar year. Future eligibility windows and the Oscar show date for 2022 will be announced at a later date.
Academy key dates for the 2020/2021 Oscars:
| Preliminary voting begins: | Monday, February 1, 2021 |
| Preliminary voting ends: | Friday, February 5, 2021 |
| Oscar Shortlists Announcement: | Tuesday, February 9, 2021 |
| Nominations voting begins: | Friday, March 5, 2021 |
| Nominations voting ends: | Wednesday, March 10, 2021 |
| Oscar Nominations Announcement: | Monday, March 15, 2021 |
| Oscar Nominees Luncheon: | Thursday April 15, 2021 |
| Finals voting begins: | Thursday April 15, 2021 |
| Museum Gala: | Saturday, April 17, 2021 |
| Finals voting ends: | Tuesday, April 20, 2021 |
| Oscars Oscar: | Sunday, April 25, 2021 |
| Museum Public Opening: | Friday, April 30, 2021 |
The Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards presentation, which was scheduled for a June 20, 2020 ceremony in Beverly Hills, has been postponed to a later date still to be determined.
The Academy’s Governors Awards, an annual celebration held at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Hollywood, will not take place this fall. Additional information about the ceremony and selection of honorees will be provided at a later date.
The 93rd Oscars will be held on Sunday, April 25, 2021, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network and in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
Visit oscars.org/rules for the complete 93rd Academy Awards rules, revised with these dates and deadlines.
