Little-Known Money Facts About the Oscars
It's no secret that the movie industry is big business.
In 2019, the motion picture, video production and distribution industry in the United States was estimated at $65.6 billion, just a bit below the previous year's tally of $65.8 billion, according to Statista. So it makes sense that when the industry comes together to celebrate its achievements, it will be a costly affair.
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That will be the case on March 12 when the 95th Academy Awards will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The televised ceremonies begin at 8 p.m. EDT and will be televised on ABC. The cost to stage the Oscars in 2022 was about $56.8 billion in 2022 million, up from $42.9 million in a pandemic-impacted ceremony in 2021, according to the fiscal year 2022 report from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
But that's just part of Oscar spending. Between dressing nominees and other stars, the cost of parties (socially distanced, of course), and the amount studios spend pitching their releases for awards each year, millions more go into the affair.
Keep reading to learn more about the serious money that goes into the making of the Academy Awards, as well as the financial benefits of taking home an Oscar.
The Price To Televise the Oscars
ABC will broadcast the 2023 Academy Awards on March 12, just as it has annually since 1976, and it isn't an inexpensive proposition for the Walt Disney Company-owned network. The Los Angeles Times reported that ABC signed a 10-year contract extension in 2016, worth more than $1 billion, to keep the Oscars on the network through 2028. ABC asked for between $1.7 million and $2.2 million for a 30-second advertisement in 2022 and sold all 60 of its ad slots, Variety reported.
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The Cost of an Oscar...
The first Oscar statuette was given out on May 16, 1929, in Hollywood. Since that first awards banquet, more than 3,000 of the statuettes -- an Oscar stands 13.5 inches tall and weighs 8.5 pounds -- have been presented. While it is priceless to the winner, the statuette costs about $400 to manufacture and is made from bronze and plated in 24-karat gold. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences granted the UAP Polich Tallix fine art foundry in New York's Hudson Valley the contract to make the statuettes beginning with the 2016 ceremony, the Times Union in Albany, New York, reported.
It takes about three months to produce 30 statuettes, per the company.
...And Its Value on the Open Market
In recent years, we've seen athletes auction off their memorabilia -- World Series rings, Heisman trophies and the like -- for cash for things such as contributions to charity or to fund the education of a grandchild. The same can't happen with an Oscar. The official regulations of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science say winners, or someone who has inherited or been gifted an Oscar, can't sell the statuette before giving the Academy a chance to buy it. For $1.
The Jennifer Lawrence Pay Raise
For up-and-comers, winning an Oscar can translate into millions of dollars.
Jennifer Lawrence made about $10,000 in 2010 when she appeared in "Winter's Bone," earning an Academy Award nomination. Two years later, when she appeared in the first installment of the "Hunger Games," she was paid $500,000.
By 2015, with the best actress Oscar in her hands for "Silver Linings Playbook," she was the world's highest-paid actress, earning $52 million that year, Forbes reported.
The Host's Share
With all the money being spent at the Oscars, you'd think the host might get a big piece of the pie. But that isn't the case, apparently. Comedian Jimmy Kimmel revealed in 2016 that he'd be earning $15,000 for the hosting duties in early 2017.
Kimmel is reprising the role again this year, hosting for the third time. Presumably, he won't be getting much of a raise, if any. But he got lots of credit from Bill Kramer, the Academy's CEO, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. After last year's controversy - remember when Will Smith slapped host Chris Rock - the choice of host clearly came down to comfort and familiarity.
"It's so important to have a host who knows how to handle live television and a live audience," Academy CEO Bill Kramer said in the interview. "He's funny, he's respectful, his edges aren't too sharp."
'Who Are You Wearing?' The Price of the Gown
The biggest part of the annual Oscars show happens before the celebrities fill the awards hall. Instead, it happens outside, on the red carpet, as the nominees and A-listers stop to answer reporters' questions. And the first one is usually the same: "Who are you wearing?" Just the name being uttered by the celebrity can reap rewards for the designer, but the attire -- especially for the women -- doesn't come cheap.
Good Housekeeping estimated the price of some of the most expensive Oscars gowns of all time. The publication pegged the one-shoulder silver Armani Prive dress, with Swarovski crystals sewn in, that Cate Blanchett wore in 2007 at $200,000. Lupita Nyong'o walked the red carpet in 2015 in a long white gown, emblazoned with 6,000 pearls, from designer Calvin Klein estimated to cost $150,000. The memorable mint green Valentino gown Kate Winslet wore in 2007 was worth a reported $100,000.
The Jennifer Lawrence Gown
The biggest stars typically aren't paying for their expensive wardrobes, and even they might not be able to afford them. Either the actors have a contract to represent a designer, or the designers flock to them, offering to design an outfit for the big night.
That was the case with Jennifer Lawrence's Oscar gown in 2013, which she wore when she accepted the best actress award for "Silver Linings Playbook." The cream strapless dress with the voluminous skirt was designed by Raf Simons for Christian Dior Haute Couture -- and Marie Claire UK said the dress was worth $4 million. That includes the price of the intricate gown as well as the fee Lawrence was paid to wear the stunner. The gown was so much to handle, however, that Lawrence fell, gracefully, as she walked up the steps to accept the Oscar.
The same publication also reported that Nicole Kidman was paid $2 million to wear another Dior Haute Couture grown, this one chartreuse in color, to the 1997 Academy Awards.
The Record-Setting Cate Blanchett Jewelry
And then there's the jewelry. Just as designers are eager to dress the stars, jewelers see to it that the A-list actresses have some of the sparkliest pieces around their necks or adorning their wrists, fingers and ears.
Cate Blanchett is believed to have set a record in 2014 for the priciest-ever Oscars ensemble -- $18.1 million. Her Armani Prive gown cost an estimated $100,000 but it was the opal and diamond jewelry that sent the price of her outfit soaring. The designs from Swiss design house Chopard were worth $18 million, The Hollywood Reporter said.
The same year, Charlize Theron accessorized her $90,000 Christian Dior dress with more than $15 million worth of jewels from the Harry Winston collection.
The Lavish Gift Bags
The five nominees in each of the five major categories - best actor and best actress, best supporting actor and best supporting actress, and best director - annually receive a gift bag worth thousands of dollars. In 2020, the nominees each received gifts worth about $225,000. The prize, put together by marketing company Distinctive Assets, included items big and small, from "hydrogen-infused" water to bath bombs to plastic surgery to all-inclusive trips. Just what's in the 2021 gift bag hasn't leaked out.
The value of the 2023 bag is considerably less, according to Forbes, at $126,000, but it still contains an interesting collection of gifts. Recipients will find everything from a bottle of coconut water to a certificate for plastic surgery to a vacation to a 10-acre estate in Canada worth $40,000, per Forbes.
Bigger Budget, Better Picture?
Ten films are nominated for Best Picture, and a few of them have brought in eye-popping numbers. As of Jan. 24, the day the nominees were announced, the 10 films had combined for $1.574 billion in domestic ticket sales, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
But all films were not created equally. As of that day, three films - "Top Gun: Maverick," "Avatar: The Way of Water and "Elvis" had combined to bring in $1.468 billion, per The Reporter. That left a total box office of just about $106 million to be shared by the other seven nominees.
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Jami Farkas contributed to the reporting of this article.
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Little-Known Money Facts About the Oscars
