(AFP) Television viewership of the Academy Awards ceremony rose for the second year in a row, with viewership of the event, in which "Everything Everywhere All at Once" won seven awards, 18.7 million viewers, according to the station. ABC Monday.
That's a 12% increase in viewership from the previous edition of the celebration, which upset Will Smith's slapping of comedian Chris Rock on stage.
The recovery continues in the rates of follow-up to the most prominent cinematic event, but at a slow pace, after it touched its lowest levels during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In 2021, the celebration was held with limited attendance due to the pandemic, while its audience reached an all-time low of 9.85 million viewers.
Several factors this year contributed to the revival of television viewership for the party and the return of interest in this event, the most important of which is the comedian Jimmy Kimmel assuming the celebration again, and the presence of an innovative film such as “Everything Everywhere at Once” among the competing works, in addition to huge and popular productions such as “ Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way of Water.
This upward trend in the number of viewers is a pleasant result for the organizers of the party, because the traditional television transmission of it was negatively affected by the growing demand from young people, especially on social networks and video-on-demand platforms.
Despite the increase in the rate of television follow-up to the event, this year's numbers constitute the third lowest level ever.
The evening, which featured two singing performances by Rihanna and Lady Gaga, received critical acclaim.
"Everything Everywhere All at Once" dominated the party, winning seven Oscars in major categories, including Best Picture and Best Actress, for its lead, Michelle Yeo, who became the first actress of Asian descent to receive this major award.
Official numbers for the evening's viewership are due to be released on Tuesday, since ABC's numbers are preliminary.