Oscars 2026: The Academy sets New Timelines and Rules for Voters like A Must Watch Rule for Best Pictures Category

Oscars 2026: With the 97th Oscar Awards finished off seamlessly, the Academy has now turned its focus on the upcoming 98th Oscar Awards that is set to happen in 2026. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science has revealed set ground rules and timeline for the voters, nomination categories and much more on Monday. 

The 98th Academy Awards are set to happen on 15 March, 2026 for which AMPAS has set certain rules – primary being – Voters cannot cast their votes for the Best Picture Category unless they watched all the nominated films in order to be eligible to vote for the final round. Yet another welcoming rule states that all designated nominations will be presented along with their names in the final ballot, as opposed to just the name of the nominated film. 

Mark your calendars! The 98th #Oscars will take place on Sunday, March 15, 2026.

Nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2026. pic.twitter.com/vhoYGGh5Pz

— The Academy (@TheAcademy) April 21, 2025

The upcoming Oscars introduces a new category that has been added since 2001, the Inaugural Award for Achievement in Casting. This category will go through a preliminary round of voting to determine a shortlist of 10 films. This will also be a part of a Q&A with the designated nominees. 

While the new rules are all welcome, certain undefined sub – rules such as how the voters for the Best Picture Category will prove that they have watched the movies or when and where the inaugural Casting Director Award will be presented. 

Dates of Submission, Voting period and Deadlines for the upcoming Oscar Awards are as follows: 

The Academy also has several other rules and regulations for movie campaign promotions, AI integration. To read the complete rules, visit – oscars.org