Hollywood’s biggest night is shrinking on the small screen.
The 98th Academy Awards drew 17.9 million viewers across ABC and Hulu, a roughly 9% drop from last year and one of the lowest audiences in recent history. The numbers underscore a long-running slide for an event that once dominated American television.
Even a familiar face couldn’t reverse the trend.
Host Conan O’Brien returned for his second stint, delivering jokes and late-night-style banter, but the broadcast struggled to hold attention over its more than three-hour runtime.
The ceremony did, however, generate 184 million social media impressions, up 42% from 2025, as clips, memes, and viral moments spread rapidly across platforms like Instagram and TikTok. The shift suggests audiences are increasingly consuming the show in fragments rather than sitting through the full broadcast.
It’s part of a broader collapse in traditional TV audiences.
Awards shows across the board have seen declining ratings as streaming services and short-form content reshape viewing habits. Where once the Oscars were appointment television, they now compete with an endless scroll of on-demand entertainment.
The contrast with past decades is stark.
The 1998 ceremony drew roughly 57 million viewers, a reminder of how dominant the broadcast once was. Even in the years before the pandemic, Oscar telecasts routinely outperformed today’s numbers.
Critics point to a familiar list of problems.
Long runtimes, slow pacing, and a format packed with niche industry awards have made it harder to keep modern audiences engaged. In an era of instant content and second screens, a three-hour broadcast is a tougher sell.
The Academy is betting on a digital future.
Plans are in place to move the Oscars from ABC to YouTube in 2029, a shift aimed at reaching younger viewers who are more likely to stream, scroll, and clip than watch live TV.
More over at The New York Post:
Abysmal Oscars TV ratings revealed – after snorefest awards ceremony https://t.co/ysE6KTPDI9 pic.twitter.com/u1wbdhk0zW
— New York Post (@nypost) March 18, 2026
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