In a rehearsal studio near the Dolby Theatre, dancers run a sweeping routine while a band tests a dramatic swell of strings: the hum of last-minute staging, the hush before millions tune in. This moment is part spectacle, part logistics, and part strategy — a strategy the academy has summed up with an internal push it calls 7plus as it leans into big cultural moments to draw global audiences.
Why a single rehearsal mirrors a bigger change
The rehearsal is not just about timing and camera hits. It is an example of how the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is recalibrating the telecast for a world that expects both surprise and scale. Bill Kramer, CEO of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, framed the effort as “leaning into big cultural moments. ” Lynette Howell Taylor, the academy’s president, said that even amid difficult headlines the organization wants “this night [to be] about elevating artists and celebrating filmmakers. ”
That emphasis shows in clear choices: Conan O’Brien was invited back as host with broad creative leeway; producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan narrowed musical moments to two major spectacles drawn from Sinners and K-Pop: Demon Hunters; and the producers devised a new on-air tribute format for the casting category, assembling a five-person presenting group informally known as the “Fab Five. ”
How creative decisions are being made — and who is shaping them (7plus)
Behind those decisions are named executives and a creative team with specific roles. Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan run the show as executive producers and have steered choices about clips, live performances and the new casting presentation. Conan O’Brien, the returning host, tested material in comedy clubs and has been given latitude to shape his monologue. Michael Bearden serves as music director, Misty Buckley as production designer and Mandy Moore as supervising choreographer; together they are building the Sinners sequence that will involve choreography and costuming beyond the film’s original staging.
For Sinners, the creative team enlisted costumer Ruth E. Carter and choreographer Aakomon Jones to expand the film’s music into a broadcast sequence built around the song “I Lied to You, ” a moment producers describe as both musical and visual. Kapoor and Mullan have also said they will limit the number of on-air musical numbers to two, concentrating attention on those large-scale presentations.
Voices in the room: grief, celebration and global reach
The ceremony is being planned under the weight of industry losses. Producers anticipate a substantial In Memoriam segment and an accompanying online gallery to honor figures such as Robert Redford, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall and Rob Reiner. The academy acknowledges the sensitivity of that segment and the difficulty of fitting every tribute into the broadcast.
At the same time, the Academy is moving for growth and new engagement. Kramer and Howell Taylor have discussed broader shifts in distribution and interaction: the organization has signed a deal to move the Oscars telecast to YouTube beginning in 2029, a step the academy says will enable new second-screen experiences such as commentary and audience polling to reach viewers across 225 countries. The 98th ceremony’s U. S. television audience earlier reached 19. 7 million viewers, a five-year high that underscores the stakes for future broadcasts.
What this means for viewers and the industry
For inside-the-room attendees and the global audience, the changes aim to balance tradition with spectacle. The inclusion of a K-pop performance drawn from an animated hit and a celebration of Sinners’ musical storytelling signal a desire to reflect work that resonated worldwide. Producers have teased other surprises — reunions from Bridesmaids and Marvel properties and even a playful extraterrestrial moment — that are intended to create appointment viewing for varied audiences.
Producers and academy leaders frame these moves as responses to both grief and opportunity: honoring a difficult year in film while also testing new formats and partnerships to sustain a massive live event.
Back in the rehearsal room, the band cuts, the dancers reset and a technician calls for quiet. The scene repeats: an intricate choreography of people who are translating strategic aims into moments onstage. The academy’s 7plus push is audible there — in an arranger’s cue, a director’s note and a host’s final run-through — where celebration and risk meet under the lights, and where the night’s outcomes will be felt by artists in the theatre and viewers watching across time zones (ET).
