High-profile celebrities are calling for the 97th Academy Awards to be cancelled or altered in light of the worst wildfires disaster in Los Angeles' history. (Reuters: Sarah Meyssonnie)
In short:
Some high-profile celebrities are calling for changes or a cancellation to the 2025 Academy Awards in light of the Los Angeles wildfires disaster.
The marquee event is set to take place on March 2, after its nominations were delayed twice due to the unfolding emergency situation.
Multiple other awards season events have also been delayed or impacted as LA grapples with its worst wildfires in history.
As Los Angeles continues battling the worst wildfires disaster in its history, some high-profile celebrities have called for the marquee event of Hollywood's awards season — the Academy Awards — to be cancelled altogether.
Two major blazes, the Palisades and Eaton fires, are still burning uncontained in LA after tearing through almost 15,000 hectares since January 7, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
On Monday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that the 97th Oscars will go ahead as planned on March 2, local time, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, but the awards' voting period had been extended and the the announcement of nominations had been delayed for a second time.
Two major blazes, the Palisades and Eaton Fires, are still burning uncontained in LA after tearing through almost 15,000 hectares of land. (AP: Ethan Swope)
"We are all devastated by the impact of the fires and the profound losses experienced by so many in our community," Academy CEO Bill Kramer and president Janet Yang said in a joint statement
"The Academy has always been a unifying force within the film industry, and we are committed to standing together in the face of hardship.
"As we want to be sensitive to the infrastructure and lodging needs of the region in these next few weeks, it is imperative that we make some changes to our schedule of events, which we believe will have the support of our industry.
"We are determined to use this opportunity to celebrate our resilient and compassionate industry. We also look forward to honoring our frontline workers who have aided with the fires, recognizing those impacted, and encouraging people to join the Academy in supporting the relief efforts."
Oscars nomination voting was extended until Friday, with nominees now set to to be announced in a virtual event at 5:30am (11:30pm AEST) on January 23.
The Academy's annual Oscars Nominees Luncheon, which was initially scheduled for February 10, has also been cancelled.
And while the Oscars are the biggest awards season event to be impacted by the emergency response in LA, it is also not the only annual ceremony thrown into doubt by the city's wildfires.
Which other awards season events have been impacted?
While the Oscars are set to take place as planned, the Academy has announced that its Scientific and Technical Awards would be rescheduled from its original date of February 18, although a new date is yet to be named.
LA's fires have also delayed the Critics Choice Awards by a fortnight. Presented annually by the Critics Choice Association, the event was tipped to be held on January 12 at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, about 16 kilometres away from the Pacific Palisades suburb ravaged by fires.
The enormity of the destruction in southern California has snuffed out all festiveness in the film industry's season of celebration, with multiple awards season events delayed or impacted. (AP: Damian Dovarganes)
That event will now happen on January 26.
Nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Awards also went ahead despite the outbreak, although the guild opted to announce nominees in a press release rather than a live event in the early days of the disaster.
- Academy Awards: March 2
- Critics Choice Awards: January 26
- Grammy Awards: February 2
- Producers and Directors Guild Awards: February 8
- Writers Guild Awards: February 15
- BAFTAs: February 16
- The Film Independent Spirit Awards: February 22
- Screen Actors Guild Awards: February 23
The SAG Awards are arguably the most telling Oscar forecast there is, and while the guild's picks don't always align exactly with those of the film academy, they often come very close to mirroring them.
There are also several events which will take place without major delay.
On February 2, the annual Grammy Awards will happen at Crypto.com Arena in downtown LA after nominations were revealed in November.
Some additional events have been cancelled, including Universal Music Group's Grammy-related events, its Artist Showcase and awards after-party, with the organisation saying it would redirect resources to wildfire recovery aid.
The Producers Guild of America Awards and the Directors Guild of America Awards will both continue to be held on February 8 at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, while the Writers Guild Awards will take place at the same location a week later.
Which celebrities want the Oscars to be cancelled?
Renowned horror author Stephen King posted on social media on Thursday that he was not only declining to vote for this year's Academy Awards nominees, but said that he did not believe the event should happen in light of the LA fires.
Fire crews report significant gains in Los Angeles despite winds
Photo shows A line of firefighters in yellow uniforms walks along a mountain ridge
"No glitz with Los Angeles on fire," he said in a post to the Bluesky platform.
After receiving some backlash from followers who disagreed with him, King doubled down in a second post saying he did not feel that it was appropriate for the Oscars to take place "while LA burns".
"I hear what you guys are saying about the Oscars, and how they're a celebration of life, and the show must go on, blah-blah-blah, so-on-and-so-forth," King said.
"It all makes a degree of sense, but to me it still feels like Nero fiddling while Rome burns.
"Or in this case, wearing fancy clothes while LA burns."
King is not the only celebrity to suggest changes to this year's awards season schedule.
Actor Jean Smart, known for her performances in the TV programs Designing Women, Hacks and in The Brady Bunch Movie and Sweet Home Alabama films, publicly threw her support behind not televising the Academy Awards.
The Oscars could turn into an LA fires charity drive
The enormity of the destruction in southern California has quickly snuffed out all festiveness in the movie industry's high season of celebration.
The Oscars will be transformed due to the wildfires and that most of the red-carpet pomp seen around the event will be curtailed if not altogether cancelled.
With so many left without a home by the fires, there's scant appetite for the usual self-congratulatory parades of the season.
Focus has turned to what the Oscars might symbolise for a traumatised Los Angeles.
Full list of Golden Globes winners
Photo shows A Japanese man stands in a boat with two other men while holding up a fan.
On Tuesday, the Producers Guild created its own fund to support producers affected by the fires, while Harvey Mason Jr, the Recording Academy CEO and Board of Trustees chair Tammy Hurt, both said this year's Grammys "will carry a renewed sense of purpose: raising additional funds to support wildfire relief efforts and honoring the bravery and dedication of first responders who risk their lives to protect ours".
Suggestions have been raised from within the entertainment industry that a telethon-like charitable element could be added to this year's Oscars.
For the Academy, the wildfires have been acutely personal.
Four of the academy's 55-person board of governors lost their homes, according to The Hollywood Reporter, including producer Lynette Howell Taylor, visual effects governor Brooke Breton, sound branch governor Mark P. Stoeckinger, and animation branch governor Jinko Gotoh.
Several high-profile TV series were also forced to pause production because of the fires, although few movie shoots were put off by the disaster.
Silvina Knight, an Emmy-winning makeup artist, told the Associated Press that the fires are "another setback — a big one," to the industry.
"I'm not sure how people are going to feel about getting dressed up, and when they just lost everything," she said.
"But I don't know, it might be a show of force when we come back. Yeah, this is tragic, but we are all coming together."
ABC/Wires
