February is a long way away, but it's been reported that the 2021 Oscars could end up being postponed.
Variety's sources have said that while plans are nowhere near concrete at the moment, it's looking like the ceremony could be pushed back to further in the year. Currently, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences have loosened some of the restrictions on eligibility due to lockdown measures.
Those rule changes were announced in April, but since then, studios have been withholding movies from release until such time as they're able to be released. So far, the only major movie that could potentially be an Oscar contender that's still on track for release is Christopher Nolan's 'Tenet'.
That movie is still scheduled for July, however cinemas won't be able to show it here in Ireland until August 10th. In normal circumstances, if a movie is released before the end of 2020, it can be eligible for the 2021 Oscars. However, if the postponement goes ahead, it could potentially mean that movies released after the year-end deadline would be eligible.
So far, AMPAS have not commented or confirmed the story, and given how there's bigger issues at stake for the movie industry, the Oscars' postponement might be further down the priority list.
