The Oscars go digital: Hollywood’s biggest night heads to YouTube in 2029

The Oscars are officially leaving the living room.

Beginning in 2029, the Academy Awards will stream live and free on YouTube worldwide, ending a decades-long run on broadcast television and marking one of the most consequential pivots in the ceremony’s history. The multi-year deal hands YouTube exclusive global rights from the 101st Oscars through 2033, with ABC retaining the telecast through the show’s centennial celebration in 2028.

For the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the move is less a break from tradition than an admission of reality. Linear TV no longer commands the audience it once did, and Hollywood’s biggest night has spent years chasing relevance, attention, and younger viewers. YouTube, with its unmatched global reach and mobile-first audience, offers all three.

Under the agreement, the Oscars will be available live across YouTube platforms, complete with red carpet coverage, backstage access, and the Governors Ball. Commercials will remain, but time limits will not, granting the Academy unprecedented freedom over the show’s length, pacing, and presentation. Accessibility features, including multilingual audio tracks and closed captioning, are also central to the deal.

Behind the scenes, the numbers are telling. Industry sources say YouTube’s winning bid crossed into nine figures, outpacing offers from Disney/ABC and NBCUniversal. Disney, which has aired the Oscars for more than 50 years, was reportedly looking to scale back costs as ratings continue their long decline. Even recent spikes, sparked by viral moments or cultural flashpoints, have failed to restore the viewership of the Oscars’ broadcast-era peak.

The shift to YouTube also reshapes the power dynamic. Without a network gatekeeper, the Academy gains near-total creative control, free from broadcast constraints that once dictated which awards made the cut and how long the show could run. For better or worse, the Oscars can now be exactly what the Academy wants them to be.

Questions remain. How will viewership be measured? What happens to existing international broadcast deals? And can a ceremony rooted in old Hollywood grandeur retain its cultural weight on a platform better known for vlogs, livestreams, and creators than prestige cinema?

Still, the logic is hard to ignore. YouTube is already where global audiences gather, scroll, and stay. As Hollywood grapples with shifting distribution models and an uncertain theatrical future, the Oscars’ leap to streaming feels less like a risk and more like an overdue recalibration.

A century after its debut, the Academy Awards are betting that survival, and relevance, depends on meeting the audience where it already lives: on the smallest screen, with the biggest reach.