5 ideas to increase the Oscar ratings for 2025, including debuting fresh trailers for new movies

The ratings for the 96th Academy Awards are in, and they’re … not bad!

Variety reported that Sunday’s Oscar broadcast got a slight bump from 2023 for 19.5 million viewers, which is about a four-percent increase in total audience from last year’s show.

Trying to make grandiose changes to make more people tune into the Oscars just feels like a lost cause. This year’s Oscars featured two of the biggest movies of 2023 as its main nominees in Oppenheimer and Barbie, and there were plenty of big stars and worthwhile musical numbers to draw people in.

There just is a gradual decline because of the overall culture’s interest in awards shows. Oscars are still important to help give various films a boost in recognition and box office success, and they’re clearly still going to be televised every year.

Despite the lower ratings than the past, they’re still one of the most-watched live events on the televised calendar. In 2023, it was the biggest non-sports show to air.

Instead of recommending unnecessary wholesale changes, we’ve got some tweaks that the broadcast could implement to help pad those numbers a bit and ensure a healthy future for the annual show.