Academy Awards reportedly reviving popular group presenter format

The forthcoming 96th annual Oscars will reportedly take a page from the telecast some 15 years ago, having groups of past Oscar winners in a particular category welcome the newest member of their tribe.

This news comes from The Hollywood Reporter, which pointed out the popularity of that element from the 2009 telecast.

Traditionally, the previous year’s winner passes the torch to the new one, but the 2009 broadcast saw Halle Berry, Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren and Shirley MacLaine get a standing ovation before they gathered to introduce the Best Actress nominees and ultimately presented Kate Winslet with the trophy for The Reader.

That year, Sean Penn was presented with his Best Actor Oscar for Milk after Adrien Brody, Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, Anthony Hopkins and Ben Kingsley gathered to salute each nominee.

The night’s supporting categories followed that group format as well.

While the Motion Picture Academy hasn’t confirmed that it’s bringing it back, the previously announced first round of presenters seems to support THR‘s story.

The presenters include last year’s winners, like The Whale‘s Brendan Fraser and Everything Everywhere‘s Best Actress winner Michelle Yeoh, as well as Best Actor veterans Nicolas Cage, Al Pacino, Sam Rockwell and Matthew McConaughey, and Best Actress/Supporting Actress winner Jessica Lange.

Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the 96th Academy Awards will air live on ABC and broadcast outlets worldwide on Sunday, March 10, from Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. This year, the show will begin at 7 p.m. ET.

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