The 98th Academy Awards take place Sunday, March 15, 2026, broadcast live on ABC from the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, with streaming on Hulu. Conan O'Brien returns as host for the second consecutive year, after the Academy and ABC confirmed his comeback in late 2025. The ceremony starts at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT, with an official red carpet preshow at 6:30 p.m. ET. Here is what is on the record as of March 4, 2026.
When and how can viewers watch?
The show airs live on ABC beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern, 4 p.m. Pacific, on March 15. For the first full ceremony cycle since Hulu became Disney's streaming hub, the broadcast streams on Hulu alongside the linear feed — a continuation of the arrangement the networks used for the 2025 ceremony. A 30-minute official preshow begins at 6:30 p.m. ET. Check local listings and the network's own schedule pages closer to the date; broadcast details occasionally adjust in the final week.
Who is hosting, and what has been announced?
Conan O'Brien hosts, per the Academy and ABC's announcement in late 2025 — his second straight year, following his well-received debut at the 97th ceremony in March 2025. The producers and creative team for the 98th edition, along with the annual questions about runtime and category presentation, are typically confirmed in February; as of early March 2026, the Academy has not publicly announced changes to the category lineup, and last year's format — all 23 competitive awards presented live — is the working baseline.
How did we get here — the key dates?
The 2026 season ran on the now-standard calendar: nominations voting closed in early January, nominees were announced in mid-January 2026, and final voting ran through mid-February, closing roughly a month before the show. Films released in theaters during 2025 were eligible. The ceremony returns to the Dolby Theatre, its home since 2001, under the Academy's ongoing arrangement with the Hollywood venue. Nothing about the March 15 date conflicts with prior Academy confirmations — it keeps the Oscars in the mid-March slot the institution has favored since 2024, a shift from the late-February airings of the 2000s and the pandemic-era April shows of 2021.
What does this change for viewers?
Practically: one night, one channel, one streamer. Households that have dropped cable can watch the full ceremony on Hulu with a standard subscription, as they could in 2025 — no pay-per-view layer. For Oscar-party planning, the earlier 7 p.m. ET start (the show moved from 8 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET in 2024) means the telecast wraps earlier on the East Coast. Nominee listings, presenters, and In Memoriam details are still being rolled out in the weeks before the show; the Academy's official channels are the source of record, and major outlets including the BBC and The Associated Press carry full coverage of the announcements.
For more context, read Emmys 2026: What to Know About the 78th Ceremony and This Year's Nominations.
For more context, read how oscar nominations work.
For more context, read How the Venice Film Festival Works, Explained.