As of recent, Hollywood award shows have significantly fallen from grace. This year’s Oscar awards, premiering April 25th, are predicted to be the least watched in a long while. The Palm Springs Film Festival was canceled. And the Golden Globes, although they happened, did not even air on live television, and some nominees weren’t invited to go.

For the most part, the Covid-19 pandemic is blamed, and it does play a big role in the recent unpopularity of these events: between strict mandates and the recent spike in Omicron variant cases, many are unwilling to go to a crowded indoor event. Many are also weary of going to movie theaters, and films that would usually receive nominations have not even been seen by audiences.This may alienate the audience ; if movies they don’t know or don’t care about are receiving these awards, why would they watch the award shows?

Other issues are also playing a role in the lack of enthusiasm for award shows. For example, claims of sexual misconduct and a lack of inclusivity among its membership have resulted in much controversy and a lack of credibility for the Golden Globe awards.

It was a combination of these issues that led to a drop in viewership. The lack of interest was already slowly occurring before the pandemic hit. As time goes on, younger people are showing less and less interest in the programs. Currently, the median age for viewers of these types of shows is 50. This is thought to be because most celebrities among the youth are mainly on social media and streaming services but not on television programs. Because teens are not familiar with many television actors, these shows aren’t as interesting to them, and it’s getting harder to draw in new viewers.

It’s hard to say where awards shows may go from this point. Though most likely they will never regain the popularity they had before the pandemic, a small audience might continue to watch them or perhaps they’ll die out come the next few years. Only time will tell.