The Oscars, the film industry's biggest night, is planning a return to form after two years of scaled-back hostless events.
This is despite Covid-19 vaccine requirements for all those in attendance, as well as mandatory PCR tests for performers and presenters, not to mention Sean Penn's calls to boycott the event and his threats to publicly "smelt" his statuettes if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is unable to speak during the live telecast on Sunday.
Producers of the 94th Academy Awards, which will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, are making all the efforts to lift the TV event out of its ratings slump, which has only been compounded by the pandemic.
Scroll through the gallery above to see the final Oscars preparations.
New elements of the Oscars telecast were recently announced, including the handing out of eight awards ahead of the live broadcast, and a campaign with Twitter to encourage fans to vote for their favourite movies, even if they were not nominated.
This year, for the first time in 35 years, there will be three hosts, with Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes sharing the role. It will be the first time hosting for all three women.
When is the Oscars 2022 ceremony?
The 2022 Academy Awards will be broadcast in the US on Sunday, March 27, at 8pm Eastern Standard Time.
How to watch the Oscars in the UAE
In the UAE, the ceremony will begin at 4am on Monday, March 28. OSN is the official broadcaster in the Middle East, and will stream the Oscars on its new OSN+ service, which recently replaced the OSN Streaming app.
A pre-show will begin right after midnight on March 28, followed by the ceremony. The entire show will be repeated at 7am and then at 8pm. Highlights will again be screened at 10.55pm on Tuesday, March 29, at 5.45pm on Wednesday, March 30, and then at 9pm on Saturday, April 2.
How to watch the Oscars in the US
ABC is the home of the Oscars in the US. There are two pre-shows to tune in to before the ceremony begins: On The Red Carpet Live! Countdown to the Oscars, co-hosted by ABC News, and GMA3: What You Need To Know with co-anchors Amy Robach and T J Holmes.
You can also stream the pre-show on ABC News Live and watch the show on abc.com or on the ABC app.
How to watch the Oscars in the UK
For those in the UK, the ceremony will begin at 1am on Monday, March 28, and will be be shown on Sky Cinema. The show can also be streamed on Now Sky Cinema Pass.
Who is nominated for the Oscars 2022?
A number of noteworthy names to watch out for at this year's ceremony include Jane Campion, whose acclaimed drama The Power of the Dog comes off an impressive awards season run. It is also the most nominated film this year, including for Best Director for the New Zealand filmmaker, who is now the only woman in Oscars history to be nominated twice in that category.
Sci-fi epic Dune, which was partly shot in Abu Dhabi, has also had a strong showing at various awards ceremonies over the past few weeks, and goes to the Oscars with 10 nods, including in the Best Picture, Cinematography and Adapted Screenplay categories.
Equally impressive are the accolades won so far by Coda, the groundbreaking drama featuring deaf actors in the lead. The film, which stands for "child of deaf adults", tells the story of a teenager, who is the only hearing member in her family. When she decides to move away to pursue a singing career, it upends the family's dynamic and threatens their fishing business and livelihood.
Another film to watch out for is the Japanese drama Drive My Car, about an actor-director who finds companionship with his female driver. It's nominated in four categories, including Best Picture and Best International Feature.
And then there's Danish animated docudrama Flee, the acclaimed film by Jonas Poher Rasmussen, which has been shortlisted for Best International Feature, Best Documentary Feature and Best Animated Feature. Detailing the true story of an Afghan refugee and his journey from Kabul to Copenhagen, the film uses distinct hand-drawn animation to tell a highly personal tale of trauma.
Who will present at the Oscars this year?
Presenters this year are as diverse as they get. Lady Gaga might have missed out on an Oscar nomination for her turn in House of Gucci, but she’ll still be gracing the stage to present an award. Others presenters include Kevin Costner, Chris Rock, Zoe Kravitz, Rosie Perez and Youn Yuh-jung, who won the Best Supporting Actress award last year for Minari.
Academy Award winners Rami Malek and Anthony Hopkins will also be on stage to announce winners, as will Marvel star Simu Liu, along with Uma Thurman, Ruth E Carter, Lily James and John Leguizamo.
Who will perform at the Oscars 2022?
As is tradition at the Oscars that nominees for the year's Best Original Song perform their tracks live. This year, Beyonce and Billie Eilish will take to the stage. Last year, the performances of nominated songs were relegated to a pre-show segment.
Beyonce is set to perform Be Alive from King Richard, which is up for six awards, including Best Actor for Will Smith. Eilish and her brother, Finneas, will perform No Time to Die, from the James Bond film of the same name. The 2021 blockbuster, which was Daniel Craig's last outing as 007, is up for three awards.
Country singer McEntire will take to the stage for Somehow You Do, from the drug addiction drama Four Good Days, the film's only nomination, while Sebastian Yatra will perform Dos Oruguitas from the Disney animated film Encanto, one of three nominations for the global hit including Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score.
Northern Irish singer Van Morrison, who wrote and performed Down to Joy for the film Belfast, will not make it to the show owing to scheduling conflicts with his ongoing tour. Directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh, the feature, which recently won Outstanding British Film at Baftas, is up for seven Oscars, including the coveted Best Picture.
Scroll through the gallery below for photos from the Oscars 2022 nominees luncheon:
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British filmmaker Kenneth Branagh and wife, Lindsay Brunnock, attend the 94th Annual Oscars Nominees Luncheon at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles on March 7, 2022. AFP -
US actress Kristen Stewart arrives at the 94th Annual Oscars Nominees Luncheon. EPA -
US actress Jessica Chastain. AFP -
US actor and director Bradley Cooper. AFP -
British actor Andrew Garfield. AFP -
US singer-songwriter Billie Eilish. AFP -
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch. AFP -
US actor Will Smith. Reuters -
Actors Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz. Reuters -
US actresses Ariana DeBose, left, and Paloma Garcia-Lee. AFP -
US actor JK Simmons. AFP -
US actor and singer Lin-Manuel Miranda. AFP -
US actress and filmmaker Maggie Gyllenhaal, left, and her husband, US actor Peter Sarsgaard. AFP -
US actress Aunjanue Ellis. AFP -
US actor Denzel Washington. AFP -
US director Steven Spielberg. AFP -
British actress Emilia Jones. AFP -
American actress Ariana DeBose. AFP
