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Michael Cieply: Thought For A Hot July – Why Not Shake Up The Oscars With a “Midsummer Rule”?


The last two years saw Oscar ratings rise as mid-year hits took the top prize. So why not try a 'Midsummer Rule' for Best Picture nominees?

Last year on this date, the eventual Best Picture winner Oppenheimer was just three weeks away from its domestic release, and construction fencing down by the beach was already plastered with atomic-blast posters zeroing in on the big prize. Come late August and early September, of course, the festivals and awards insiders will pry open the Oscar race with a flurry of fine films, some of which have already been seen in Cannes. But any of those, even if they hit big, will already have missed the summer audience wave, which, as we’ve learned, can do much to float the Academy’s fragile boat come Oscar time.

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Michael Cieply

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