In Hollywood, no one wants to party anymore. With a double strike of writers and actors bogged down due to the intransigence of the studios, it is one by one that the award ceremonies are leaving the 2023 calendar. After the Emmy Awards which reward the best of the small screen, it’s the turn of the Honorary Oscars to take refuge in 2024.
In a sign that no one is hoping for a quick resolution anymore, the honorary Oscars night, generally considered the social kick-off of awards season, has been postponed to January 9. The gala was originally scheduled to be held on November 18, 2023. The evening, named Governors Awards, is held annually in Los Angeles to reward outstanding careers. This year, the trophies will be awarded to actress Angela Bassett, editor Carol Littleton, director Mel Brooks and former Sundance Institute official Michelle Satter.
Also read: Festivals without stars, releases postponed… Hollywood paralyzed by strike
The screenwriters, on strike since May, were joined in July by the actors, a double strike that Hollywood had not seen since 1960. The directives of the two unions prohibit actors and writers from shooting films or series, but also from go to red carpets or participate in promotional events.
Normally the regulations provide for exemptions in the event of honorary prizes being awarded. But few in Hollywood want to ask for such an exemption that would make them look like a strikebreaker. The organizers of the Oscars are also undoubtedly keen to avoid such criticism. Maintaining the feast could have been interpreted as a sign of provocation, or even support for the studios.
As at the Deauville or Telluride American Film Festival, the November ceremony would probably have taken place without the named stars and without their loved ones, collaborators, colleagues or sisters responsible for praising them.
The traditional Oscars are scheduled for March 10. Experts estimate that the strike will end well before then, but the movement has already reshuffled the cards for this 2024 edition. Some presumptive favorites, like Dune 2, have seen their release postponed and will not be eligible, leaving a avenue for Barbie, Oppenheimer, Poor Creatures, Killers Of The Flower Moon, Napoleon.