Oscar viewership has been steadily recovering since the all-time low (10.4 million) in 2021, increasing every year since to a healthy 19.5 million viewers in 2024. But it’s not all bad news for 2025. Variety also reports that the Oscars were the most watched non-news, non-sports program of the year so far, and did super well with the coveted 18-49 demographic. In fact, “when isolated to adults 18-34, it was the highest-rated Oscars in five years with a 3.17,” according to the outlet. That’s nothing to sneer at.
There’s at least one easy scapegoat to blame for a minor viewership dip. Hulu experienced technical difficulties with its livestream throughout the night, most notably when the broadcast cut out entirely before the end of the show. Rob Mills, exec VP of unscripted and alternative entertainment at Walt Disney TV, had some word salad to say about the issue when debriefing with Variety. “This is not my area of expertise, and obviously you feel bad for the people who were trying to watch the show—it’s unfortunate,” he said. “I think the best thing to do is look at it as a way to figure it out and make sure it doesn’t happen again. It’s not the first time this has happened [in streaming] and probably won’t be the last… but we are at least moving into this world where we are meeting viewers where they are.” Well, sure!
And then there’s the age old question: does the average viewer care about the movies nominated for Oscars? It was a great night for independent cinema, but indie film is not always the most accessible for audiences across the country. “The most important speech at the Oscars last night was Sean Baker’s warning that films are not in the theaters anymore,” The Wire and Elsbeth star Wendell Pierce posted to Twitter/X on Monday. “I went to an Oscar party and no one paid attention because the majority hadn’t seen the movies. The Academy must expand the time films have to be in theaters. One week is not enough.” Hey, can’t hurt to try it out and see if it boosts the numbers next year, right?
