It’s anyone’s guess how many movies will get a nomination for Best Picture this year, now that the Academy has revised its rules so that anywhere from five to ten films could make the cut depending on their vote totals. You might think that would be enough tension to liven up the reading of the Oscar nominations on January 24, but now, the Academy has added one more random twist: The Best Picture nominees will no longer be announced alphabetically, so dedicated Oscar watchers won’t be able to immediately detect which films got snubbed. Instead, those few seconds of confusion and suspense for people who wake up early on the East Coast and remember which day it is will be prolonged a few seconds more. Why stop there? Obfuscate the reading of the actors’ names with blind items about their sex lives and chemical addictions! Let’s push this thing to eleven! [Gold Derby]
