And if they want F1 to speed away with the Best Picture prize, they better buckle in to view all 10 films.
As one social media user cracked after the rule change was announced last April, “We did it, film Twitter. The Oscars just made it mandatory for voters to actually watch all the nominated films in a category before voting.”
But while Academy members are required to view the Oscar hopefuls through the group’s screening portal, they have the option to check a box asserting they saw the film through other means (at a festival, premiere or in the theater).
Which means that, yes, there are some sinners.
Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, one Academy member admitted to falsifying their to-be-watched list. And in an email published in Deadline, another anonymous filmmaker shared that they’d abstained entirely, writing, “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).”
But not all Oscars-related rules are so easily broken. Before any of the envelopes are opened we’re tearing into all the surprising guidelines in place for the 98th Academy Awards.
