After the mixed reception received from the preceding year's ceremony, Neil Meron and Craig Zadan announced that they would not be returning to produce the show for the fourth year.[19] Shortly afterwards, actor Neil Patrick Harris announced that he would not host the Oscars for a second time. In an interview released from The Huffington Post, he said "I don't know that my family nor my soul could take it. It's a beast. It was fun to check off the list, but for the amount of time spent and the understandable opinionated response, I don't know that it's a delightful balance to do every year or even again."[20] With re-elected Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs assuming leadership duties, the Academy hired David Hill and Reginald Hudlin in September 2015 to produce the ceremony. A day after they were announced as the producers, Hill said that the show would have two hosts.[21]
However in October 2015, it was announced that actor and comedian Chris Rock would be hosting the telecast.[22] They explained why they brought Rock back as host, saying, "Chris Rock is truly the MVP of the entertainment industry. Comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, documentarian — he's done it all. He's going to be a phenomenal Oscar host!"[23]
Rock expressed that he was thrilled to be selected to emcee the gala again, commenting, "I'm so glad to be hosting the Oscars, it's great to be back."[24]
Several other people were also involved with the production of the ceremony. Harold Wheeler will serve as musical director and conductor for the event.[25]Derek McLane will return to design a new set and stage design for the show.[26]Fatima Robinson will serve as choreographer for several musical numbers during the event.[27]
In a further effort to streamline acceptance speeches, dedications were displayed on an on-screen ticker, rather than read by the winner.[28]
North American box office gross for Best Picture nominees[29]
Film
Pre-nomination (Before Jan. 15)
Post-nomination (Jan. 15 – Feb. 28)
Post-awards (After Feb. 28)
Total
The Martian
$226 million
$1.6 million
N/A
$228 million
The Revenant
$54.1 million
$107 million
N/A
$167 million
Mad Max: Fury Road
$153 million
--
--
$153 million
Bridge of Spies
$71.5 million
$1.3 million
N/A
$72.2 million
The Big Short
$44.6 million
$21.6 million
N/A
$67.7 million
Spotlight
$28.8 million
$8.7 million
N/A
$38.8 million
Brooklyn
$22.7 million
$11.8 million
N/A
$35.9 million
Room
$5.2 million
$7 million
N/A
$12.8 million
The combined gross of the eight Best Picture nominees at the United States and Canadian box offices was $704.2 million, at an average of $88 million which is the sixth-highest of all time in the past 33 years.[30][31] 2015's eight Best Picture nominees were in the second highest average number of theaters per film at 2,323, second only to 2003 where the average theater count per nominee was 2,368. However, the average gross per theater ranks 26th out of the 33 years evaluated with an average of $32,636 per theater.[30]
When the nominations were announced on January 14, 2016, The Martian was the highest-grossing film among the Best Picture nominees with $226.6 million in domestic box office receipts.[30]Mad Max: Fury Road was the second-highest-grossing film with $153.6 million; this was followed by Bridge of Spies ($70.7 million), The Revenant ($54.1 million), The Big Short ($44.6 million), Spotlight ($28.8 million), Brooklyn ($22.7 million), and Room ($5.1 million).[30]
Of the top 50 grossing movies of the year, 46 nominations went to 11 films on the list. Only Inside Out (4th), The Martian (8th), Straight Outta Compton (18th), Mad Max: Fury Road (20th), Creed (28th), Bridge of Spies (42nd), and The Revenant (44th) were nominated for Best Picture, Best Animated Feature, or any of the directing, acting, or screenwriting awards. The other top 50 box office hits that earned nominations were Star Wars: The Force Awakens (1st), Cinderella (9th), Spectre (10th), and Fifty Shades of Grey (16th).
Criticism regarding lack of diversity
Shortly after the nominations were announced, many media outlets observed a lack of diversity amongst the nominees in major categories for the second year running.[32][33][34][35] Shortly after, Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs stated:
"Of course I am disappointed, but this is not to take away the greatness (of the films nominated). This has been a great year in film...However, we are not stopping...We are moving forward and will continue to move forward with conversation and action. That needs to happen not just within the Academy, but the entire motion picture industry.[36]
Isaacs said the Academy is taking "dramatic steps to alter the makeup" of its membership and diversify it in areas of "gender, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation."[37] In response to the lack of diversity, several celebrities such as Spike Lee, Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith and several others,[38] including this years' Best Original Song nominee Antony Hegarty,[13] have announced to boycott the ceremony.[39] She explained the reason for boycotting the ceremony saying, "It is a system of social oppression and diminished opportunities for transpeople that has been employed by capitalism in the U.S. to crush our dreams and our collective spirit".[40]George Clooney,[41]Lupita Nyong'o,[42]Viola Davis[43] and several others actors also commented on the lack of diversity. In addition, host Chris Rock also faced pressure to step down as host.[44][45] Rock nevertheless hosted the ceremony and focused his entire opening monologue on the controversy.[46] President Barack Obama also spoke up about the controversy saying,
"I think that California is an example of the incredible diversity of this country...I think that when everyone’s story is told then that makes for better art, it makes for better entertainment it makes everybody feel part of one American family, so I think as a whole the industry should do what every other industry should do which is to look for talent, provide opportunity to everybody. And I think the Oscar debate is really just an expression of this broader issue. Are we making sure that everybody is getting a fair shot?”[47]
Many celebrities and Academy members, including Michael Caine, Ice Cube, Charlotte Rampling, Whoopi Goldberg, Penelope Ann Miller, Helen Mirren and Gerald Molen voiced their defense of the Oscars, saying that the nominations are based on performance and merit, not race.[48][49][50][51] Michael Caine stated, "In the end you can’t vote for an actor because he’s black. You can’t say ‘I’m going to vote for him, he’s not very good, but he’s black, I’ll vote for him."[52]Ice Cube, who produced the hit biopic film Straight Outta Compton, stated that "It’s crying about not having enough icing on your cake. It’s just ridiculous.”[53]Penelope Ann Miller responded to the criticism by stating "I voted for a number of black performers, and I was sorry they weren't nominated. To imply that this is because all of us are racists is extremely offensive. I don't want to be lumped into a category of being a racist because I'm certainly not and because I support and benefit from the talent of black people in this business. It was just an incredibly competitive year."[54] Oscar winner and former host Whoopi Goldberg defended the Academy as well by saying, “The issue is not the Academy. Even if you fill the Academy with black and Latino and Asian members, if there’s no one on the screen to vote for, you’re not going to get the outcome that you want. I won once, so it can’t be that racist. I’ve been black the whole time."[55] Producer Gerald R. Molen called the idea of a boycott "ridiculous" stating "There is no racism except for those who create an issue,” while adding “That is the worst kind. Using such an ugly way of complaining.”[56] Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren defended the Academy, saying it's "unfair" to attack the organization; "It just so happened this year, it went that way." Mirren mentioned actor Idris Elba of Netflix's Beasts of No Nation, as someone who would have been nominated, but was not "because not enough people saw or wanted to see a film about child soldiers." Mirren noted that the issue rests on the industry, "what happens before the film gets to the Oscars, what kinds of films are made and the way in which they’re cast and the scripts. It’s those things that are much more influential, ultimately, than who stands there with an Oscar."[57]
Academy's diversity improvement plan
In January 2016, the Academy issued the statement to reform the voting rights and membership rules, by increasing the number of women and minorities in membership and changing lifetime voting rights to a requirement of three ten-year terms of active status in the industry, unless a person has won or been nominated for an Academy Award.[58] Issacs said, "The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up, these new measures regarding governance and voting will have an immediate impact and begin the process of significantly changing our membership composition."[59] The Academy will establish three new governor seats that will be nominated by the Academy President for three-year terms and confirmed by the Board.[60] The Academy will also add new members who are not Governors to its executive and board committees where key decisions about membership and governance are made.[61] However, the Academy's actions also include taking away the membership rights of academy members who have not recently worked in the industry, such as actor Bill Mumy and award-winning screenwriter Patricia Resnick. "Replacing sexism and racism with ageism is not the answer," Resnick said.[51][62]
Late February, Creed director Ryan Coogler and Selma director Ava DuVernay announced they would hold a charity event addressing the ongoing water crisis in Flint, Michigan on February 28, coinciding with the Academy Awards ceremony. As a number of prominent critics of the Academy's "all too white" nomination list decided to turn the ceremony down in order to attend #JusticeForFlint, it has been widely regarded as an alternative event for those disappointed with – or even boycotting – the Oscars ceremony.[63]
