Last year, the Academy decided to shake things up with a brand-new rule: voters now have to personally attest that they actually watched the films they’re voting on. Sounds reasonable, right? In practice… well, it’s intimidated some longtime members and, apparently, scared a lot of people right out of participating.
It’s gotten to the point where seasoned voters—folks who’ve been around Hollywood longer for decades—are skipping the vote entirely. They simply haven’t seen enough films to feel comfortable ticking the boxes. The “brutally honest” ballots that occasionally leak online has had voters admitting they flat-out skipping categories because they haven’t watched every nominee.
And then you have the extreme cases. Take one anonymous Oscar-nominated director who recently emailed their frustration to Deadline’s Pete Hammond. Their confession? They hadn’t watched most of the nominated films, had no interest in doing so, and frankly felt their time was too valuable. Of the films they did manage to see, most were “mediocre.”
This unnamed filmmaker argued that the Oscars have largely become irrelevant. Instead of keeping up with contemporary nominees, they’d rather revisit classics like “Singin’ in the Rain,” “North by Northwest,” or “The Searchers.” Modern films? Meh. They specifically called out “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” “CODA,” and “Anora” as examples of recent nominations that, in their view, won’t stand the test of time. They wonder which of these films will anyone even be watching in five years? Contrast that with “The Godfather,” “Lawrence of Arabia,” or “Patton”—now those are films that linger.
And this isn’t just one disgruntled director whining. It’s part of a bigger trend. The Oscars have been waving red flags for years about their waning relevance. Viewership keeps dropping, with the 2023 broadcast drawing only 18.7 million U.S. viewers—a far cry from the numbers a decade ago, which had twice that audience.
It used to be that movie fans worldwide would, with much anticipation, tune into the Oscars—and, for that matter, almost any awards show. The glitz! The glamour! Waiting to see which film would take home Best Picture meant something, both culturally and historically. Not as much anymore.
Maybe it’s because Hollywood movies just aren’t as culturally relevant as they used to be. There was a time when Best Picture winners like “Gladiator,” “Titanic,” “The Silence of the Lambs,” “Forrest Gump,” “The King’s Speech,” and “Dances With Wolves,” were actually seen by millions of Americans—check their box office; without adjusting for inflation, they all made boatloads of cash. Now? Who’s actually seen “CODA”? “Nomadland”? These just aren’t films that get people excited anymore.
Here’s the full letter sent to Deadline:
“Hi, Pete, I enjoy your articles. I thought you might be interested to hear a take from an Academy member about this year’s rules. I haven’t seen even half of the nominated films, nor do I care to, because my time is far too valuable to spend watching movies I know I’d never vote for (much less be able to sit through). I found most of the films I did see to be mediocre, and nothing that I nominated made the final cut. Therefore, since I don’t want to lie, I decided I simply would not vote at all this year. Yes, I’d like to vote for “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” but not at the price of watching four other movies I know won’t be as good. But really, the Oscars have become pretty irrelevant. “Anora”? “CODA”? “Everything Everywhere All At Once”? vs “The Godfather,” “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Patton”? Which three movies will people still be watching five years from now? It’s all about the film, not the award. Rather than watch the Awards, I’ll probably watch “Singin’ In The Rain” or “North By Northwest” or “The Searchers” – REAL best pictures which weren’t even nominated. Feel free to quote me, but please don’t use my name.”