Oscar has a problem, and I say that as a fan. If I could, I’d take one of those famous statuettes by its tiny golden hand, and show it a happy life in the bars, restaurants and movie theatres of its native Hollywood. But, clearly, others don’t feel the same way. The number of people who tuned into the Academy Awards last year was the lowest it has been for eight years. Even the traditional box office boost for victorious movies isn’t necessarily worth as much as it used to be.
Viewing figures and box office receipts are, however, only the visible tip of what is a deeper problem: the Oscars aren’t keeping pace with cinema itself. They’re falling behind at a time when movies – and the ways in which they are funded, made and consumed – are a-changin’.
It was so much simpler when the first Academy Awards ceremony took place in the faux-Spanish ballroom of the Roosevelt Hotel, on 16 May 1929.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate, free for a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first month free.
UNLOCK ACCESS Try a month freeAlready a subscriber? Log in