The partisan Oscars

Future. While many of us know the Oscars air Sunday night, fewer of us seem to care. Last year, we could arguably blame the restrictions of the pandemic for the 58% ratings drop, with less than 10 million viewers watching the 2021 telecast. But what will be to blame this year?

According to YouGov (a non-partisan polling organization), where we live, our political party, opinions about foreign language films, and COVID vaccines could help give insight into who will be watching the 2022 Academy Awards.

Divided we stand
According to polling, Americans unsurprisingly have a lot of thoughts about the show this year, which may or may not end up affecting ratings.

• Vaccine policy: Guests will be required to show proof of vaccination, and at least two negative PCR tests (performers and presenters will not) — 46% of people oppose this rule. 55% of Republicans support allowing performers and presenters to bypass proof of vaccination, while 31% of Democrats agree.
• Speeches: Among those who participated in the poll, 54% of people do not think it’s appropriate for Oscar winners to discuss politics in their speeches.
• ZIP Code: Americans who live in cities (36%) are more interested in the Oscars than those in the suburbs (25%), towns (13%), and rural areas (23%).
• Best Picture nominations: When asked if non-English films should be eligible for Best Picture, there seem to be party divides. (48% of Democrats say the Academy should equally consider foreign films, while 25% of Republicans agree.)

United we fall

If ratings drop as much as they did in 2021, we’re looking at about the same number of people who watch 90 Day Fiancé — and as much as we love ourselves some 90 Day, putting the two in the same sentence hurts. Yet with the Academy already cutting categories “out of necessity,” we’re officially worried about what could happen if ratings continue to plummet.