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Elana Klein and Mykenna Maniece
Updated
- The 2024 Academy Awardswill air on Sunday, March 10, on ABC.
- The ceremony alone costs over $56 million, according to data compiled by WalletHub.
- A star's Oscars look costs $1.5 million on average — in 2014, Cate Blanchett's cost $18.1 million.
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2023 was a big year for film. There were the record-breaking box-office successes "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer," a 118-day writers and actors strike, and an infamous Jacob Elordi bathtub moment.
On Sunday, March 10, the stars will gather to celebrate it all at the 96th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
From the red carpet to the famed statues, WalletHub's annual Oscars report found that honoring the biggest achievements in film comes with a high price tag.
Here's a breakdown of everything it costs to celebrate the movies in true Hollywood fashion, according to the report.
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The 2024 Academy Awards ceremony will cost a whopping $56.9 million.
WalletHub's 2024 report found that it takes $56.9 million to put on the Academy Awards.
This is just a fraction of the money spent on the actual nominees, though. "Killers of the Flower Moon" — which is nominated in 10 categories this year, including best picture — had a budget of $200 million, higher than any of the other best picture nominees.
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The 50,000-square-foot red carpet alone costs $24,700.
That's not the only shocking figure associated with the red carpet: Its installation takes 30 rolls of carpet, 600 hours, and an 18-person crew, reported WalletHub.
Celebrities will begin gracing the red carpet several hours before the ceremony's 7 p.m. ET start time, which is an hour earlier than usual.
Each gold-plated Oscar award costs $400.
The estimated cost of each 24-karat gold-plated mini statue awarded to winners is about $400.
The Academy gives out awards in 24 categories, and a winner is not allowed to sell their statue without first offering to sell it to the Academy for $1, according to its policy.
Couples must pay at least $100,000 for tickets to the Vanity Fair Oscar Party.
Each year, the highly anticipated, ultra-glamorous event hosted by Vanity Fairis attended by Hollywood's biggest stars — often after they've had a change of wardrobe.
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The Oscar goodie bags contain gifts like skincare, luxury getaways, snacks, and appliances and are worth $125,000.
WalletHub estimates that the value of each goodie bag given to Oscar nominees is $125,000.
But, the "Everybody Wins" bags aren't actually gifted by the Academy, they're the work of LA-based marketing agency Distinctive Assets, reported PRNewsire.
Some of the most extravagent gifts in 2024's bags include trips to Switzerland and St. Barts, the full line of Miage skincare products, and luxury kitchen appliances from THOR Kitchen.
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It costs $10 million to complete the look of an A-list actress for the Oscars.
While A-listers wear multi-million-dollar looks, the cost of dressing a first-timer at the Oscars is $266,000, reported WalletHub.
Because the cost of a look varies based on a person's stardom, the average cost of a look at the Oscars is about $1.5 million.
In 2014, Cate Blanchett made Oscar history when she wore a $18.1 million look. Her $100,000 Armani Privé gown was the least expensive element of her outfit — her jewelry alone was estimated to cost $18 million.
The only person to wear even more expensive jewelry was Lady Gaga in 2019, whose cost $30 million.
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A 30-second advertisem*nt that premieres during the Oscars costs close to $2 million.
Last year, an average of 19.9 million people tuned in to watch the show, WalletHub reported. That's an 8% increase from 2022, so it's no surprise that running an ad during the live event's commercial breaks is expensive.
It costs $1.85 million to buy 30-seconds of ad time during the Oscars, which is 73% less than the $7 million it cost to run an ad during the Super Bowl.
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ABC makes at least $120 million in ad revenue on Oscar Sunday.
WalletHub estimates that ABC, the TV network that hosts the awards, makes $120 million in ad revenue on the day of the Oscars.
Upwards of $23 million of that revenue comes from the pre-show red-carpet coverage.
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Hollywood spends upwards of $100 million on awards-season lobbying.
Turns out, winning an Oscar requires much more work than just releasing a movie.
In 2023, The New York Times reported on the competitve nature of Oscars campaigns, in which professional strategists seek to shape public opinion on films, actors, and opponents.
WalletHub estimates that over $100 million are spent on lobbying each year — that's more than the budgets of best picture nominees "Past Lives" and "The Zone of Interest" combined.
It costs $20,000 to stream one film for voters to judge.
The Academy has gone digital. Rather than paying millions of dollars to send physical copies of the year's nominated pictures to voters, the group has turned to streaming, which costs $20,000 per film.
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