98th Academy Awards

The 98th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the gala, the AMPAS presented the Academy Awards (commonly referred to as the Oscars) in 24 categories, honoring films released in 2025. The ceremony was televised in the United States by ABC and streamed on Hulu. Comedian Conan O'Brien returned to host the show for the second consecutive time, after receiving acclaim for hosting the previous year, with Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan returning as executive producers for the third consecutive year, and Hamish Hamilton returning as director.

In related events, the Academy held its 16th Governors Awards ceremony at the Ray Dolby Ballroom of the Ovation Hollywood complex in Hollywood on November 16, 2025. The Academy Scientific and Technical Awards will be presented on April 28, 2026, in a ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles.

One Battle After Another won a leading six awards, including Best Picture and Best Casting, becoming the inaugural recipient for the latter category. Other winners included Sinners with four awards; Frankenstein with three; KPop Demon Hunters with two; and All the Empty Rooms, Avatar: Fire and Ash, F1, The Girl Who Cried Pearls, Hamnet, Mr Nobody Against Putin, Sentimental Value, The Singers, Two People Exchanging Saliva, and Weapons with one each. The telecast drew 17.86 million viewers in the United States.

The nominees for the 98th Academy Awards were announced on January 22, 2026, at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, by actress Danielle Brooks and actor Lewis Pullman. The sixteen nominations received by Sinners are the most in Oscar history, surpassing the previous record of fourteen shared by All About Eve (1950), Titanic (1997), and La La Land (2016). Sinners also broke the record for most Black individuals nominated for a single film at ten. Multiple film critics and journalists praised this breakthrough of nominations, applauding the Academy for embracing Black cinema and the horror genre. The film's studio, Warner Bros. Pictures, earned thirty nominations, tying its own record set in 2005. Ultimately, Warner Bros. won eleven Oscars (one for Weapons, four for Sinners, and six for One Battle After Another), tying the record for most wins by a studio in a single year.

At the age of 30, Timothée Chalamet became the youngest actor to earn three acting nominations since Marlon Brando, and also the youngest person to be nominated for both acting and producing in the same year, surpassing Warren Beatty. Wagner Moura became the first Brazilian nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Stellan Skarsgård became the first actor nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for a non-English language international feature film.

The 40-year span between Amy Madigan's first nomination, for her supporting role in Twice in a Lifetime (1985), and her recent, for Weapons, set the record for the longest gap between Oscar nominations for an actress. Ruth E. Carter became the most-nominated Black woman, across any category, with her fifth nomination for Best Costume Design. Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the fourth woman and the first woman of color nominated for Best Cinematography, and the first woman and first Black person to win the award. Chloé Zhao became the second woman, following Jane Campion, and the first woman of color to be nominated for Best Director twice, as well as the first woman who previously won. With nine nominations for Best Picture, Dede Gardner became the most-nominated female producer, breaking her tie with Kathleen Kennedy.

With his win for One Battle After Another, Adam Somner became the second producer, following Sam Zimbalist (for 1959's Ben-Hur), to win posthumously for Best Picture. Michael B. Jordan became the second actor to win an Oscar for a dual role, following Lee Marvin for Cat Ballou (1965). Jessie Buckley became the first Irish actress to win for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Winning Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Sean Penn became the fourth male actor (and eighth overall) to win a third acting Oscar. Ryan Coogler became the second Black filmmaker to win Best Original Screenplay after Jordan Peele (for Get Out) in 2018. KPop Demon Hunters became the first non-Disney/Pixar animated film to win two Oscars. Sentimental Value became the first Norwegian submission to win Best International Feature Film. The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva's joint win for Best Live Action Short Film was the seventh occurrence of a tie in Oscar history and the first since 2013.

Paul Thomas Anderson, Best Picture co-winner, and Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay winner

Michael B. Jordan, Best Actor winner

Jessie Buckley, Best Actress winner

Sean Penn, Best Supporting Actor winner

Amy Madigan, Best Supporting Actress winner

Ryan Coogler, Best Original Screenplay winner

Maggie Kang, Best Animated Feature Film co-winner

Joachim Trier, Best International Feature Film winner

David Borenstein, Best Documentary Feature Film co-winner

Autumn Durald Arkapaw, Best Cinematography winner

Ludwig Göransson, Best Original Score winner

Ejae, Best Original Song co-winner

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface, and indicated with a double dagger (‡).

The Academy held its 16th annual Governors Awards ceremony on November 16, 2025, during which the following awards were presented:

• Debbie Allen – "A trailblazing choreographer and actor, whose work has captivated generations and crossed genres".

• Tom Cruise – For his "incredible commitment to [the] filmmaking community, to the theatrical experience, and to the stunts community".

• Wynn Thomas – "Production designer [who] has brought some of the most enduring films to life through a visionary eye and mastery of his craft".

• Dolly Parton – A "beloved performer [who] exemplifies the spirit of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award through her unwavering dedication to charitable efforts".

The following individuals, listed in order of appearance, presented awards or performed musical numbers:

Conan O'Brien hosted the 98th Academy Awards.

The 98th Academy Awards marked the first iteration of the Oscars in which voting was conducted with an enforced rule ensuring that all members must view every nominated film in each category before voting in the final round, or otherwise abstain their vote from a category in which they have not done so.

In March 2025, the Academy hired television producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan, for the third year in a row, to oversee production of the 2026 ceremony, with comedian and former talk show host Conan O'Brien as host of the event for the second consecutive year. Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney, long-time collaborators of O'Brien, would also return as producers for a second time; Sweeney would also serve as a writer. "We are thrilled to bring back Conan, Raj, Katy, Jeff, and Mike for the 98th Oscars," stated AMPAS CEO Bill Kramer and then-AMPAS President Janet Yang in a press release. "[Last] year, they produced a hugely entertaining and visually stunning show that celebrated our nominees and the global film community in the most beautiful and impactful way. Conan was the perfect host — skillfully guiding us through the evening with humor, warmth and reverence. It is an honor to be working with them again." In response, Kapoor and Mullan stated in a press release, "We are both so honored to be returning in our roles for the 98th Oscars. We can't wait to work with Conan and his entire team as we continue to explore even more special and heartfelt opportunities to celebrate next year's nominees and the impact of film around the world."

At a press conference leading up to the ceremony, O'Brien discussed his position and duties as host, stating, "It's not just about being funny in the moment-to-moment, it's also about acknowledging what this is about in the larger sense," adding, "As the host [...] I'm the entryway for the person watching at home and the person that the audience members can relate to." Questioned on whether he would be addressing and poking fun at the American political climate, regarding President Donald Trump and the second Trump administration, O'Brien stated, "Hosting this show is a very thin line. We're celebrating movies and the amazing people behind them, but it has to be funny without tipping into anger or politics." O'Brien would ultimately go on to make thinly-veiled references to Trump during the ceremony, notably regarding the renaming of the Kennedy Center and the lack of arrests concerning the Epstein files in the United States, though he did not mention the President by name in either instance.

As for the production team, those who returned to the telecast were Hamish Hamilton as director, Rob Paine as co-executive producer, Sarah Levine Hall and Taryn Hurd as producers, Mandy Moore as supervising choreographer, and Michael Bearden as music director; production designers Alana Billingsley and Misty Buckley, and lighting designers Bob Dickinson and Noah Mitz also returned. Collaborating with O'Brien and Sweeney as writers were Amberia Allen, José Arroyo, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Jessie Gaskell, Skyler Higley, Berkley Johnson, Ian Karmel, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Carol Leifer, Todd Levin, Jon Macks, Matt O'Brien, and Agathe Panaretos. Josh Groban, Sterling K. Brown, and Jim Downey appeared in scripted sketches, the latter reprising his role from One Battle After Another.

For the third consecutive year, comedian and journalist Amelia Dimoldenberg served as the social media ambassador and red carpet correspondent for the Oscars' online outlets. Dimoldenberg participated in multiple key events throughout awards season, culminating in interviews with nominees and talent on the Oscars red carpet. Tamron Hall and Jesse Palmer hosted the pre-show.

On March 4, Variety reported that Barbra Streisand was in talks to perform during the in memoriam segment to honor Robert Redford, who died in September 2025. Additionally, Billy Crystal honored Rob Reiner, who was killed along with his wife, Michele, on December 14, 2025. On March 6, Variety reported that Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, and Kristen Wiig were set to present together to honor the 15th anniversary of their 2011 film Bridesmaids. On March 11, the production team held a press conference, confirming the reunions of the actors from Bridesmaids and Marvel film adaptations. In an interview for Deadline Hollywood, Kapoor and Mullan announced the extended format of the in memoriam segment and implementation of the "Fab Five" format while presenting Best Casting, when five nominees are introduced by the actors from the nominated films. O'Brien also revealed that Reiner would receive "a very powerful" tribute. On March 13, People reported about the planned surprise inspired by The Devil Wears Prada (2006), said to draw from its upcoming 2026 sequel.

Also on March 11, producers announced the increased security following a warning by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of a possible attack on California by Iran in light of the Iran war. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) announced that the Dolby Theatre would be patrolled by approximately 1,000 private security officers, as well as deployed uniformed officers, surveillance cameras, and drones.

Due to time constraints and broader structural changes to the telecast, only two of the five nominees for Best Original Song were performed live during the ceremony. These were "Golden" from KPop Demon Hunters and "I Lied to You" from Sinners.

In a letter sent to all music nominees and obtained exclusively by Variety, the Academy emphasized that the category would remain fully integrated into the broadcast, even as live performances are limited to "Golden" and "I Lied to You". The letter was signed by Kapoor and Mullan, along with producer Taryn Hurd; the Academy declined to comment. According to the Academy, each nominated song would be introduced through a custom-produced segment built from footage of the film it was written for, with the goal of grounding each song in its cinematic context. Those packages would also incorporate behind-the-scenes material offering insight into the songwriting process and creative intent. The producing team also noted that nominees would receive additional promotional support across its official social media platforms, pointing to recent Spotify collaborations and the nominations announcement as examples of that outreach. The performances would be framed as segments designed to honor how music helped those stories resonate worldwide while the remaining nominees would be recognized through the bespoke film-based packages rather than live musical numbers.

This decision was condemned by nominee Diane Warren, nominated for her original song "Dear Me" from the documentary feature film Diane Warren: Relentless, stating, "It is unfair to me and my fellow nominees because you just excluded three songs and chose two. It is my fellow artists who deserve the respect which comes from a nomination [...] It is all of us or none of us and that is what it should be." In a pre-ceremony interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Kramer acknowledged the decision, making it "extremely clear" that "all of the nominees [would] be represented on the show in a special way" and that there would be two "moments" during the ceremony that would be about "celebrating big global cultural moments in cinema" with the two original song performances being a part of those moments, adding that it "does not negate the power of the other nominees and our interest in celebrating those nominees".

On March 10, 2026, the lineup of talent that would perform was announced. "Golden" was performed by Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami, while Sinners star Miles Caton and songwriter Raphael Saadiq performed "I Lied to You". The latter performance included a larger homage to Sinners, while Caton and Saadiq were joined by ballet dancer Misty Copeland, musicians Eric Gales, Brittany Howard, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Bobby Rush, Shaboozey, and Alice Smith, and co-stars Buddy Guy, Jayme Lawson, and Li Jun Li.

"This year, our music performances are inspired by two of the most powerful cultural phenomena in film: Sinners, the most nominated film in Oscars history, and KPop Demon Hunters, a global pop culture sensation," said Kapoor and Mullan in a statement, adding, "These show moments are more than just performances – they expand into cinematic tributes that celebrate the relationship between music and storytelling, and why these films resonated so deeply with audiences around the world." Per the announcement, the KPop Demon Hunters moment would begin with a "fusion of traditional Korean instrumentalists and dance, celebrating the folklore and cultural inspiration" that anchors the story in the film. On March 11, Deadline Hollywood asked Kapoor and Mullan how the ceremony would present the other three nominated songs, with Kapoor stating, "We are putting together a nomination package. All five are featured in there. And really it's shining a spotlight on the songs and the songwriters that are part of that process. But again, we've kind of taken a look at all our nomination packages this year and tried to make some creative choices of how we're using them, and spotlighting different people, and we try to just have a lot of variety within the entire show."

Notable individuals omitted from the "In Memoriam" segments included Loni Anderson, Brigitte Bardot, Robert Carradine, Richard Chamberlain, Bud Cort, Eric Dane, Samantha Eggar, Hulk Hogan, Polly Holliday, Tom Noonan, James Van Der Beek, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Peter Watkins, and George Wendt.

Beginning with this ceremony, the AMPAS presented a new competitive award that honors casting directors. The Academy Award for Best Casting is the first new Oscar category introduced since Best Animated Feature in 2001. On February 8, 2024, the AMPAS announced the creation of the category, stating, "Casting directors play an essential role in filmmaking, and as the Academy evolves, we are proud to add casting to the disciplines that we recognize and celebrate." Nominees were determined by the Casting Directors Branch within the Academy, which was established in July 2013 and totaled nearly 160 members at the time of the award's announcement. A category to award achievement in casting had previously been rejected by the Academy in 1999.

In February 2026, during a panel discussion, four of the first five nominees in the category acknowledged and celebrated the recognition of the new category. "I think it's kind of sad that it took that long," said Cassandra Kulukundis, who would ultimately win the award for One Battle After Another, adding, "I'm realizing on this journey that people really don't understand what [casting directors] do. It's the same as anything [...] You study for hours, you know the history, you know the looks." Francine Maisler, nominated for Sinners, said, "Casting directors are amazing people who lift other people up. That we're being lifted up at this moment means a lot to us and all of those casting directors that came before us." As the first recipient, Kulukundis, in her acceptance speech, thanked the Academy "for even adding this category and for the casting directors that fought tirelessly to make it happen despite everything in their way."

On March 11, 2026, the production team held a press conference. They described the theme for the show as "humanity", with Kapoor explaining that "everything that you see in the show is inspired by human touch and creativity" and that they have "completely redesigned what the stage looks like". Buckley added: "Last year was very kind of monolithic and temple-like and so this year, we were sort of looking at reverential spaces, so looking at beautiful light, organic form. We've got lots of architectural layers that there's quite a lot of kinesis in the set, and it moves and reveals this beautiful light cast by trees. We've got trees in the set this year, which is very exciting. And we're just really leaning into that human touch nature and organic with kind of really beautiful, bold modern forms as well."

On March 14, Vanity Fair published exclusive photos of the production design of the Oscars stage. It was revealed that the Dolby Theatre stage had been designed to represent a garden courtyard, with greenery woven and handmade trees throughout it, in "an attempt to create what feels like a relaxing space in a chaotic world". The area was lit to feel like golden hour, with "the warm, glowing light that bathes the landscape just before sunset". The stage was also equipped with moving components, including mechanized LED panels that could move around the stage and reveal new spaces. In contrast to previous ceremonies, evoking a sense of luxury, the team focused on using glass, metal and stone, more in line with their organic mindset. "There is an unsettled nature around the climate right now, and there's just something very calming about being surrounded by architecture, but having this space for trees to grow. We are exploring the contrast between the organic and the rigidly architectural, and that creates the feeling that life can exist anywhere," Billingsley commented.

When the nominations were announced, eight of the ten films nominated for Best Picture had earned a combined gross of nearly $750 million at the American and Canadian box offices at the time. Sinners was the highest-grossing film among the Best Picture nominees with $280 million in domestic box office receipts. F1 came in second with $189.6 million; this was followed by Marty Supreme ($80.6 million), One Battle After Another ($71.6 million), Bugonia ($17.7 million), Hamnet ($15.3 million), Sentimental Value ($4.3 million), and The Secret Agent ($2.6 million). The box office figures for Frankenstein and Train Dreams were unavailable due to distributor Netflix's policy of refusing to release such figures.

Two days before the ceremony, the nominated film The Voice of Hind Rajab became a subject of controversy related to entry restrictions to the United States, which prevented Palestinian actor Motaz Malhees from attending the ceremony.

According to Malhees, his absence was due to new U.S. immigration measures that came into force on January 1, 2026, under the second Trump administration; such measures expanded the suspension of visa issuance and entry restrictions to include travelers holding documents issued or endorsed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). Malhees publicly announced his inability to travel through a message, posted on Instagram, in which he stated that "a passport can be blocked, but not a voice".

The case received extensive coverage in the international press and was framed within the broader political context of the ceremony. It featured numerous statements concerning the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and other politically charged issues.

The Academy faced backlash involving the Best Original Song winner ("Golden") acceptance speech. When co-singer/songwriter Ejae finished her part of the speech, fellow co-writer Yu Han Lee began to give his acceptance speech when the playoff music immediately cut him off. Though Lee tried to talk over the music, he and the other songwriters were quickly ushered off the stage after appearing to try to wave at the production team to stop. The cutoff drew audible boos from the crowd inside the theater and was widely criticized on social media.

Backstage in the press room, Ejae was the first to acknowledge the moment, half-joking about the sudden musical cue that cut the speech short. However, it was her fellow winners, Lee and Mark Sonnenblick, who ultimately completed their remarks they were unable to finish onstage.

In an interview with Variety published the following day, Walt Disney Television Executive VP Rob Mills addressed the criticism and stated that the cutoff had inspired his team to rethink their approach for next year. "One thing, as we post mortem for next year, will be to look at how we're handling speeches," he said, adding, "I don't know what the most elegant solution is, but it's obviously something we should look really, really long and hard at."

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 69% of 13 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "A back-to-basics evening that was generally pleasing, mostly inspired, and once again for the cinephiles." Dominic Patten of Deadline Hollywood opined: "Sunday night wasn't perfect, but it sure was something worth watching with some drama, some surprises and a lot of fun." Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone complemented the "surprise wins, timely jokes, poignant speeches," host O'Brien's "right amount of bratty irreverence" and the Redford tribute by Streisand, describing it as "the kind of Oscar magic that could only happen on this award show". Robert Lloyd of Los Angeles Times opined: "With Conan O'Brien returning as host in 2026, the ceremony was much in the spirit of his first go in 2025, except this was all in all a livelier, funnier show."

Bilge Ebiri of Vulture felt that the show "celebrated the art form it was meant to be honoring" and described it as "an Oscars for people who actually bother to watch movies". Ben Travers of IndieWire opined that the show "felt like the first in a long time that were made with cinephiles top of mind," adding that O'Brien "brought his signature silliness and deft professionalism to a ceremony that thrived by giving film fans what they want". David Sims of The Atlantic felt that the show, narrated about the competition between Sinners and One Battle After Another, "did a good job making plenty of room to celebrate both movies sincerely," while O'Brien "ran a relatively tight ship, seeming even more confident in his second go at the gig". Television critic Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter complimented O'Brien's hosting and "stirring history-making wins," but pointed out the technical issues.

Variety chief film critic Owen Gleiberman called the show "a tasteful and overly safe show sustained by just enough suspense". He described the production design as "pleasingly bland and comfortable and a bit generic, like the show itself" and criticized the lack of "more explicit salute" to Best Picture winner One Battle After Another. Television critic Judy Berman of Time criticized prioritizing "devastating news headlines or late-night-style topical zingers or impassioned hand-wringing of any variety" over "a celebration of film artistry do what art does better than almost anything else". Coleman Spilde of Salon opined: "The Oscars still feels like it's figuring out what the future looks like, instead of shaping that future itself." Ed Power of The Telegraph called the show a "sorry circus" and felt that "a supposed celebration of Hollywood glitz and glamour amounted to little more than excruciating cameos and toe-curling jokes".

The American telecast on ABC drew in an average of 17.86 million people over its length, which was a 9% decrease from the previous year's ceremony and the lowest Oscar viewership since the 94th ceremony in 2022. Additionally, it garnered a 3.92 demo rating among adults 18–49 (equivalent to about 5.34 million viewers in that demographic), a 14% decline from last year. It became the most-watched primetime entertainment telecast of the season and generated more than 181 million impressions on social media throughout the telecast.

The following individuals were honored during the tribute:

During the tribute, segments were dedicated particularly to Rob Reiner, Diane Keaton, Catherine O'Hara, and Robert Redford, with special presentations by Billy Crystal, Rachel McAdams, and Barbra Streisand, respectively. Crystal's tribute to Reiner was joined by Kathy Bates, Annette Bening, John Cusack, Cary Elwes, Christopher Guest, Carol Kane, Michael McKean, Demi Moore, Jerry O'Connell, Mandy Patinkin, Kevin Pollak, Meg Ryan, Fred Savage, Kiefer Sutherland, Wil Wheaton, and Daphne Zuniga.

• List of submissions to the 98th Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature

• List of submissions to the 98th Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature

• List of submissions to the 98th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film

• Academy Awards official website

• The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences official website

• Oscars Channel at YouTube (run by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)

Other resources

• The Oscars (2026) at IMDb