Oscars require COVID vaccination but performers, presenters are exempt

Hollywood hypocrites! Presenters and performers at the Oscars will NOT have to show proof of vaccination or wear masks while others in attendance will

  • Performers and presenters will not need to have had a COVID vaccine in order to attend the Oscars, but they must undergo a PCR test
  • Oscars will require everyone else attending the ceremony in March to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination and at least two negative results from PCR tests
  • Face covering requirements will also vary at the event on March 27
  • Nominees and their guests in lower sections of the theater will not be required to wear masks
  • They will be seated with more distance than usual between groups
  • The Dolby Theatre seats 3,317 people but only 2,500 people will be invited
  • Those seated in the mezzanine may be required to wear masks, as they will sit shoulder-to-shoulder
  • Other award shows are still requiring those coming to the event to be vaccinated
  • LA County Health Department mandates attendees at such indoor & outdoor ‘mega-events’ be either vaccinated or present a negative test result 
  • The event will have a host at the Dolby Theatre for the first time since 2018 

Those attending the Oscars ceremony next month will be required to show proof of COVID vaccination – except, that is, the Hollywood elite.

Performers and presenters at the film industry’s highest honors on March 27 will not need to show proof of vaccination, although they will still have to undergo a PCR test.

Those attending will also be able to show a negative rapid antigen test taken on the day of the event. 

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will require others attending the ceremony but who are not taking part in the show to present proof of having received a COVID-19 vaccination and at least two negative results from PCR tests, a person with knowledge of the matter told The New York Times on Thursday.

Face covering requirements will vary at the event at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, according to the source. 

It’s believed that a more relaxed approach is being taken toward this year’s Oscar ceremony due to the fact several high-profile figures would be prevented from attending including at least one of last year’s acting award winners, together with nominees in other categories. 

The Oscars will be back will be back at their usual home of the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood next month and those attending will not be required to show proof of vaccination in order to attend 

Nominees and their guests in lower sections of the theater will not be required to wear masks. 

They will be seated with more distance than usual between groups, the source said.

The Dolby seats 3,317 people and 2,500 people will be invited.

Those seated in the mezzanine may be required to wear masks, as they will sit shoulder-to-shoulder. COVID-19 cases are declining in Los Angeles County and organizers are consulting with government officials and infectious disease experts.

The vaccination policies were first reported by The New York Times.

Last year, in 2021 ,guests were sat in socially-distanced seats as masked staff wandered between tables at the 93rd Academy Awards help at Union Station, last April 

Other changes to this years Academy Awards will see a host return to host the ceremony for the first time since 2018.

In 2019, comedian Kevin Hart pulled out of hosting the Academy Awards after homophobic tweets he made several years earlier reemerged.

He was not replaced, and while that year’s host-less format drew praise and was even emulated by other awards shows such as the Emmys, subsequent Oscar ceremonies were criticized for lacking focus and humor. 

This year, comic actor Amy Schumer, actress Regina Hall and fellow comedian Wanda Sykes, will host the awards. 

It will be the first time three women will emcee the award show.



This year, comic actor Amy Schumer, left  actress Regina Hall and fellow comedian Wanda Sykes, right, will host the awards

Pictured: the films nominated for an Oscar for best picture, top row from left, Belfast, CODA, Don’t Look Up, Drive My Car, Dune, bottom row from left, King Richard, Licorice Pizza, Nightmare Alley, The Power of the Dog, and West Side Story.

The Oscars were handed out by celebrity presenters but had no host in 2019, 2020 and 2021. 

Ratings for the telecast have fallen in recent years, dropping to a record low of 10.4 million people in the United States in 2021. Viewership of other awards shows also has declined.

Previous hosts have included late-night host Jimmy Kimmel and comedians Chris Rock and Ellen DeGeneres.

Few other details have been confirmed for the show, which will be produced by Will Packer and had been postponed for a second consecutive year.

The delay, reportedly to avoid clashing with February’s Winter Olympics and the Super Bowl in Los Angeles, was announced months before the Omicron variant forced multiple Hollywood shows to scrap in-person events this winter.  

Either way, coronavirus safety protocols have been shifting. 

Earlier this week, Disney eased its mask mandate for fully vaccinated theme park visitors in California and Florida. 

Those attending the Coachella Festival later this year do not have to be vaccinated, tested or masked. 

Hollywood’s biggest night will be the polar opposite of what was held in 2020 which was a far less showy, scaled-down affair held at Los Angeles’ Union Station complete with strict Covid testing rules.  

But over the last year, with Covid vaccines widely available and vaccine proof often a requirement for those dining out or attending sporting events, the Academy is still technically sticking to the latest minimum requirements from the Los Angeles Department of Health, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Oscars is taking a different approach to other award shows which are still requiring those coming to the event to be vaccinated. 

At the SAG Awards which will be held later in February vaccination will be mandatory. 

‘All ticketed attendees will be required to show proof of vaccination plus booster shot (if eligible), proof of negative lab-based COVID-19 PCR test within 48 hours of event, and negative antigen (rapid) test the day of the event,’ the requirements state.

Two weeks later, at the Critics Choice Awards on March 13, similar protocols will be in effect.

‘We will be 100 percent vaccinated and require a negative PCR test within 48 hours of the event. I can’t invite people to a show where they’re not going to feel safe,’ said Joey Berlin, COO of the Critics Choice Association. 

Rene Zellweger accepts the Best Actress award for Judy onstage during the 92nd Annual Academy Awards, the last to be held at the Dolby Theatre in February 2020 

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