Everything to know about the 2022 Oscars
The countdown to this year's Oscars is officially underway.
And, in the lead-up to the 94th Academy Awards, EW is gathering all of the facts you need to know about this year's ceremony, which has already caused a bit of controversy before it's even aired.
More on that and everything to know about Hollywood's biggest night — from when and where to watch, to who is hosting and presenting, and more — below.
When are this year's Oscars?
Held earlier than last year's pandemic-delayed ceremony, but still late by pre-COVID standards, the 2022 Oscars will air Sunday, March 27. The ceremony will be televised live from the Dolby Theater in Hollywood on ABC at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
How can I watch?
The easiest way to tune in is on ABC, but the ceremony will also be live-streamed for viewers living in participating markets at abc.com or with the ABC app by signing in with a participating TV provider, such as Apple TV, Roku, or Fire TV (see the full list of participating providers here). Once you've signed in, watch at abc.com/watch-live or select "live TV" in the ABC app. For cord-cutters, subscribe instantly with streaming services like Hulu Live TV, YouTubeTV, AT&T TV and FuboTV (many of these services offer a free trial as well). International viewers can check international local listings for the ceremony, here.
Who is hosting the Oscars?
Show producers Will Packer and Shayla Cowan have tapped Wanda Sykes, Regina Hall, and Amy Schumer to preside over the 2022 ceremony. The trio are the first official hosts of the Oscars in four years, since Jimmy Kimmel was the last person to do it in 2018.
ABC
Which stars are presenting?
The Academy has announced that Oscar-winning A Star Is Born performer Lady Gaga, The Batman star Zoë Kravitz, two-time Oscar winner Kevin Costner, Fearless Oscar nominee Rosie Perez, past Oscars host Chris Rock, and reigning Best Supporting Actress winner Yuh-Jung Youn (Minari) will all take the stage as presenters at the upcoming ceremony. The lineup is also slated to include Halle Bailey, Stephanie Beatriz, Ruth E. Carter, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jennifer Garner, Tiffany Haddish, Tony Hawk, Woody Harrelson, H.E.R., Anthony Hopkins, Samuel L. Jackson, Lily James, DJ Khaled, Daniel Kaluuya, Mila Kunis, John Leguizamo, Simu Liu, Shawn Mendes, Bill Murray, Elliot Page, Tyler Perry, Tracee Ellis Ross, Rami Malek, Uma Thurman, Lupita Nyong'o, Naomi Scott, Kelly Slater, Wesley Snipes, Shaun White, and John Travolta — the latter of whom is returning to the Oscars stage 8 years after his infamous Adele Dazeem flub. The final slate of announced presenters includes Josh Brolin, Jacob Elordi, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jason Momoa, Jill Scott, J.K. Simmons, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Rachel Zegler, after the West Side Story star's previous announcement that she'd been left off the Oscars guest list ignited outrage from fans.
Who is nominated this year?
Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog goes into Oscars Sunday with the most nominations of any film, with 12 nods. Close on its heels is Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi epic Dune with 10, and Belfast and West Side Story tied with seven apiece. See the full list of 2022 Oscar nominees here.
Who will win?
Check out EW's 2022 Oscar winner predictions here, including wins for Will Smith, Ariana DeBose, Troy Kotsur, and more.
Is there a pre-show?
Yes! The Oscars will once again feature a pre-show. This time around, Vanessa Hudgens, Terrence J, and fashion designer Brandon Maxwell will host The Oscars Red Carpet Show, the official lead-in to the 94th Oscars. The 90-minute special will highlight Oscar nominees, performers and presenters and give fans around the world the ultimate insiders' sneak peek at Hollywood's biggest night. It will also feature a special appearance by DJ M.O.S. The pre-show will air at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT, on ABC.
What about a red carpet show?
PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly have you covered with Red Carpet Live: Hollywood's Biggest Night! The red carpet special will feature the outlets' Jeremy Parsons, Janine Rubenstein, Gerrad Hall, Andrea Lavinthal, and Clarissa Cruz. Watch PEOPLE & Entertainment Weekly Red Carpet Live: Hollywood's Biggest Night on PEOPLE.com, EW.com, PEOPLE and EW's YouTube, Facebook and Twitter pages, as well as PeopleTV, beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT on Sunday, March 27, 2022.
What will the ceremony be like?
In a word: different. In a decision that has proven to be quite controversial among Academy ranks and the filmmaking community at large, this year's Oscars promise to present 8 awards before the live telecast in an effort to streamline the ceremony. In order to do this, the awards for Documentary Short, Film Editing, Makeup and Hairstyling, Original Score, Production Design, Animated Short, Live Action Short, and Sound will be presented an hour before the live telecast starts. Those presentations (and winners' speeches) will be edited and aired later in the live broadcast, though it's unclear to what degree.
In addition to that change, new this year will be a fan-voted award. Audiences were asked to vote on Twitter for their favorite movie of 2021 using the #OscarsFanFavorite hashtag or by casting a ballot on the Oscars Fan Favorite website. The winner will be announced live during the 2022 Oscars ceremony.
What musical performances will we get?
The 94th Academy Awards will feature special musical performers. Taking the Oscars stage will be an all-star band featuring the show's music director, Adam Blackstone; Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker; percussionist and singer Sheila E.; and genre-spanning pianist Robert Glasper. DJ D-Nice, who over the last two years united millions of people around the world with his virtual Club Quarantine parties, will also perform during the show as well as at the Governors Ball, the Academy's' official post-Oscars celebration.
The Samples, a vocal group led by Jason White, also will appear in the show this year. Rounding out this musical lineup in the telecast will be the return of an orchestra, joined this year by D-Nice and the aforementioned band.
Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, FINNEAS, Reba McEntire, and Sebastián Yatra will perform their Best Song nominees: Beyoncé's "Be Alive" from Best Picture nominee King Richard; Eilish and FINNEAS' "No Time to Die" from the James Bond film of the same name, McEntire's "Somehow You Do" from Four Good Days, and Yatra's "Dos Oruguitas" from Encanto. Van Morrison's "Down to Joy" from Belfast was also nominated, but the musician is not able to attend the ceremony.
Additionally, Encanto cast members Adassa, Stephanie Beatriz, Mauro Castillo, Carolina Gaitan and Diane Guerrero, along with Becky G and Luis Fonsi, will perform "We Don't Talk About Bruno" from the animated film during the show. This will be the first live performance of the song written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who is nominated for Best Original Song for "Dos Oruguitas," also from Encanto. Miranda will not be in attendance himself after announcing he would skip the ceremony following his wife testing positive for COVID-19.
Check out The Awardist podcast for interviews with this year's top contenders for the Oscars and more of Hollywood's biggest awards.
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