The 81st Academy Awards: Will They Watch?

Now that we've (mostly) gotten "The Dark Knight" snub out of our system, it's time to ask a burning question: Will people watch the Oscars this year? I'd like to be positive, I really would, but I think the answer is going to be a loud 'no.' In fact, I think this is going to be the poorest ratings for the Oscars in ten years (if not twenty). And this goes beyond "The Dark Knight." While that movie would have helped ratings, there were a few other things that would have helped. Not nominating songs from "The Wrestler" and "Bolt" cost the Academy two performers that would likely draw crowds: Bruce Spriengstein and Miley Cyrus. Yeah, I'm kind of glad that the Academy didn't vote for the "Bolt" song, but it's going to be really difficult to get people to watch a show when the performers consist of Peter Gabriel and a bunch of Indian singers doing Bollywood style dance numbers. And if Pete calls in sick, then we are in even more trouble.

"Wall-E" would help the ratings much. For starters, everyone knows it's going to win. Secondly, the Best Animated Film category hasn't helped draw in kids to watch the show much. After that what have you got? The actors? Well, that could help, but nobody cares about actors who win awards for films they haven't seen. Hugh Jackman might entertain people, but no matter how good a job he does if the ratings tank then the Academy will start pointing their finger at him for being the reason. Seeing as how only "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" has been a blockbuster, these movies will not draw in the audience. In short, I think this is the last year we'll see the Oscars on ABC. Next year the show will likely move to HBO, Showtime, or TNT. It's airing will be up for auction, and if the nominees next year prove to be films that don't attract audiences, I can imagine the buying price being very low.

Now, more then ever, the ratings of the Academy Awards will be most interesting. It will effect whether or not the show is commercially viable anymore. The fact that the movies getting nominations haven't gotten much of a boost from the awards speaks volumes. In short, this is going to be one rough year for the Academy. May God have mercy on their souls.