Like wedding venues in the summer, premium dates can be hard to come by in awards season. With the ongoing Covid-19 surge causing film festivals and award shows to postpone in-person ceremonies, things are getting extra crowded.
This may be a problem for the Critics Choice Association, as its awards will now take place on Sunday, March 13, which happens to be the same day as the BAFTA Film Awards in London.
Broadcast from the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Century City, the Critics Choice Awards will air live on The CW and TBS from 7-10 pm. Taye Diggs and Nicole Byer were originally announced as hosts, but there’s no confirmation on whether they will still emcee the new night.
Difficult travel protocols aside, European actors or those currently filming overseas are probably going to be more inclined to go to the show in London, then come all the way across the pond to LA.
As previously reported by The Root, the original Sunday, Jan. 9 date was postponed due to concerns about the current rise in the Omicron variant.
“Following the science and tracking the course of the Omicron variant, we believe that March 13th will be the right day to properly honor the finest achievements in film and television during the past year,” said Critics Choice Association CEO Joey Berlin in an official statement. “We could have proceeded with our original January 9th date with limited attendance or switched to a virtual awards show like we did last year, but we decided to wait until we could safely gather in person and truly celebrate with the creative community, industry leaders and our CCA members all together in one beautiful setting for all the world to see.”
In a statement to Deadline, a BAFTA spokesperson made it clear that the organization knows about the Critics Choice Awards, and is completely unbothered by the change.
“We are aware of the date change for the Critics Choice Awards 2022 and understand the unprecedented circumstances that have led to their decision this year. There are no changes to our current plans for an in person event for the EE British Academy Film Awards on 13th March and we look forward to welcoming everyone to London’s Royal Albert Hall for a safe and memorable event. There are no current plans for any satellite link up.”
Though BAFTA nominations aren’t announced until Feb. 3, the recently released longlist of finalists includes a lot of the same artists and films nominated at the Critics Choice Awards.
Unfortunately, for those hoping for an awards show throwdown, the BAFTAs were understanding about the change. Berlin even admitted the two organizations are exploring ways for everyone to participate in both events.
“Our discussions are continuing. We proposed possible ways to make lemonade out of these lemons,” Berlin tells Deadline. “It is a tough situation, but we hope this could be a way by trying to give people a benefit of both events wherever they are, L.A. or London.”
As if all that isn’t enough, the Directors Guild Awards are the night before on March 12. And with The Oscars on March 27, travel considerations must be taken into account.
Basically, all these shows must learn to deal with not having a full house of stars.
Maybe they should stop nominating the same movies for everything, and start looking outside the box for new, more diverse projects.