Film academy reportedly won’t require proof of COVID-19 vaccination at Oscars
Attendees of the 94th Academy Awards next month reportedly won’t be required to show their COVID-19 vaccination status.
Instead, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which hosts the Oscars, intends to require a negative PCR test or a negative rapid antigen test on the day of the event, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Representatives for the film academy did not immediately respond Thursday to The Times’ request for comment. Nor did the academy comment in the THR story.
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The Oscars will take place on March 27, later than usual due to the winter Omicron surge of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ceremony also will return to its usual venue, the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, leaving last year’s downtown L.A. spot at Union Station, where the show was held amid stringent COVID-19 testing requirements.
Although COVID-19 vaccines have become readily available and mandated in public places in Los Angeles County since last year’s Oscars, Hollywood insiders speculated that strict restrictions on the glitzy ceremony would preclude high-profile industry figures — and potentially some of the nominees — from attending the Oscars, THR said. The academy has not yet released its official COVID-19 protocols for the ceremony.
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Other awards shows — such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Feb. 27 and the Critics Choice Awards on March 13 — will still require proof of vaccination. The Critics Choice Awards also will require a negative PCR test within 48 hours of the event, Critics Choice Assn. Chief Operating Officer Joey Berlin, told the publication.
As the Omicron variant recedes, however, California state officials on Tuesday announced plans to lift universal mask mandates for vaccinated residents next week. But L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the region is probably weeks away from lifting its indoor mask mandate, regardless of vaccination status. Ferrer said the order could ease by the end of April unless a new coronavirus variant poses a threat.
L.A. County is taking a more cautious approach to easing its mask order, noting that the county is still recording high coronavirus transmission rates.
The California Department of Public Health is moving to relax the mask requirement statewide starting Feb. 16, but L.A. County public health officials — in whose region the Oscars take place — say they don’t believe it’s appropriate for them to follow suit. The county goals match the recommendations issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Meanwhile, the Recording Academy, whose marquee Grammy Awards honor the best in music, has seen its rescheduled show leave the state altogether. The performance-driven ceremony has been relocated from L.A. to Las Vegas. Originally set to take place Jan. 31, this year’s Grammys have been rescheduled to April 3.
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