Following the revelation that only two of the Best Original Song nominees would be included on the upcoming “three hours and no longer” Oscar telecast, there was significant public and private backlash. The show’s producers, Donna Gigliotti and Glenn Weiss, had already dealt with a huge controversy over their original host, Kevin Hart. Things didn’t get any better after it was revealed only “Shallow” from “A Star is Born” and “All the Stars” from “Black Panther” would be performed live on a telecast that doesn’t have an official host.
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Today, the Academy announced that one of the other three nominees, “I’ll Fight” from “RBG,” will be sung on the telecast by Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson.
Things we'd like to announce today:
1. @IAMJHUD will perform the nominated song "I'll Fight" on the #Oscars!
2. This has been our favorite tweet of the day.
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) January 31, 2019
90 minutes later The Academy announced, “The Place Where Lost Things Go” from “Mary Poppins Returns,” sung in the film by Emily Blunt, would be performed by a “surprise, special guest.”
Spoiler Alert: "The Place Where Lost Things Go" from "Mary Poppins Returns" will be performed on the #Oscars.
BONUS SPOILER ALERT: It will be performed by a surprise special guest!
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) January 31, 2019
Who that guest remains to be seen, but considering how upset “Poppins” star Lin-Manuel Miranda was on social media over the original leak that only two songs would be included, he might be a safe bet.
The remaining nominee is “When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings” from “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” (sung by Willie Watson & Tim Blake Nelson). According to Variety, it will also be added to the telecast but who sings it remains to be seen. It now also appears each song will be truncated to just 90 seconds.
“I’ll Fight” was written by Diane Warren who is now a 10-time Oscar nominee and a vocal member of the Academy. The idea Hudson, an Oscar winner, tw0-time Grammy winner and one of the most renowned vocalists of the era who sang the In Memoriam song four years ago might not perform on the telecast really rubbed many members of the Academy the wrong way.
Variety also reports that there were discussions that all of the nominees banded together in an “it’s all of us or none of us strategy.” Whether that is completely true is unclear.
The Academy is also facing harsh criticism over the fact categories outside of the Shorts such as Cinematography, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing won’t be announced live on the ceremony, but handed out during commercial breaks.
The 91st Academy Awards will be broadcast live (sorta) on Feb. 24 beginning at 5 PM PT, 8 PM ET on ABC.