"The fact this wasn’t already a rule is insane"- Fans shocked as Oscars mandate voters watch all nominated movies before voting

The Oscars are arguably the biggest award for movies right now, and to ensure their smooth and unbiased functioning, new rules are often added to the roster. Today, a set of new rules was announced for the upcoming 2026 Oscars.

A brand new rule from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences requires all voters to watch every nominated movie in each category to be eligible to vote in the final round of Oscar voting.

As this new rule was announced, many fans were more than shocked to discover that till now, there was no rule that the voters had to watch all the movies. This started a conversation between fans on social media platforms like X, Reddit, and Instagram about why the rule was not in place before.

X user @IIoydyy summed this up, saying:

"The fact this wasn’t already a rule is insane."

Many other fans had similar things to add to this.

"What do you mean? this should be the bare minimum.. Now they have to reassess all previous films and nominations 😆"- another user said.

"YESS! Makes these votes and awards 10x fairer!"- yet another user said.

"You'd think this would have been a thing."- another user added.

"Should have been done decades ago."- another user said.

As expected, fans are completely onboard with this, and this does seem like a fairer way of assessing the movies that come for the Oscars.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has also added a few other rules that are set to impact the awards in the coming year.

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What are the new rules for the Oscars 2026?

The Academy has revealed a handful of new rules that will be applicable in next year's Oscars ceremony. Of course, the rule of voters having to watch all the nominated movies in each category is the most eye-grabbing headline, but a few other important rules are also being set in motion.

One crucial change is regarding how films by makers with refugee or asylum status are treated. As per the new rule, filmmakers will now be allowed to submit a movie through a different country in case it is made by a dissident filmmaker from an authoritarian or undemocratic regime. This will allow more voices to stand out in filmmaking.

Another important rule that has been announced is regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence. Previously, the Academy claimed that the use of generative AI would not help or harm their chances at the Oscars.

But now, it has been confirmed that the films will be judged with consideration for Artificial Intelligence. This will prompt filmmakers to rely more on human output. This particular rule comes after generative AI was used in The Brutalist to enhance the Hungarian dialogue of stars Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones.

There are also new rules announced regarding

Put together, these rules are set to enhance the ceremony further and make it fairer to all filmmakers around the globe.