Los Angeles, June 16: The 93rd Oscars have been postponed by eight weeks to April 25 after the coronavirus pandemic shuttered movie theaters and wreaked havoc on Hollywood's release calendar, the Academy said Monday.

With many studio blockbusters and indie arthouse movies forced to push back their release dates until theaters reopen, the cut-off date for Oscar-eligible films has also been extended from December 31, 2020 to February 28, 2021. Oscars 2021: 93rd Academy Awards 'Likely' to be Pushed and New Dates Could Be Out Soon.

Oscars Postponed by Two Months

"Our hope, in extending the eligibility period and our Awards date, is to provide the flexibility filmmakers need to finish and release their films without being penalized for something beyond anyone's control," itsaid Academy president David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson in a statement.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 16, 2020 12:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).