Academy Voter: ‘I’m Not Going to Watch the Oscars This Year’

There’s no host, there’s likely to be a huge boredom factor — and there’s likely to be the usual leftist political posturing among award winners during their acceptance speeches.

And for at least some of these reasons, one voting member of the Academy has told The Hollywood Reporter that even he will not be watching the Oscars on television this Sunday night.

Here’s what The Hollywood Reporter says about this: “A male member of the Academy’s 519-person directors branch, granted a cloak of anonymity, reveals why he filled out his final Oscar ballot the way that he did. ‘I’m not going to watch the Oscars this year,’ he volunteers, saying the idea of a hostless ceremony has turned him off. ‘I’m just anticipating a very boring show. One of the best things about the show is the opening monologue, which is usually pretty good — it’s what happens after that that’s not great.'”

The publication went on to say: “As for the Academy’s plan to hand out four awards during commercial breaks (which it rescinded after outcry): ‘It’s an abomination,’ he says. ‘If ABC, which I’m sure was pushing for this, thought that dumping cinematography and film editing was going to bring back any of the viewers the show has lost in recent years, they’re idiotic.'”

Never mind that the 91st Academy Awards, which air this Sunday evening, February 24, will cost a whopping $44 million in total, according to a recent report from the finance website WalletHub.

Related: This Year’s Oscars Will Cost a Ridiculous Amount of Money

The individual Oscar statue that’s given to winners during the ceremony costs about $400; and the famous red carpet that the stars traverse as they enter the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles costs nearly $25,000.

The Oscars are also a moneymaker, though — as ads during the telecast will cost an average of $2.6 million for just 30 seconds.

That’s about half what it cost for a spot during this year’s Super Bowl.

But the biggest setback for the Oscars this year will be the steady ratings decline that each ceremony has suffered over the years.

There’s not much chance this year’s event will see any sort of increase in viewership, since the telecast is moving forward without a host.

Comedian Kevin Hart dropped out of the gig after receiving backlash online for past jokes of his that some people deemed homophobic.

This year’s telecast has also received backlash after the announcement circulated that some important awards may be given out during commercial breaks rather than live on the air — though that’s been rescinded.

Are you planning on watching the ceremony on Sunday night? Tell us about it in the comments section below.

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