Sadly, even a efficiency of the KPop Demon Hunters music “Golden” couldn’t make Oscars rankings go up, up, up.
At present, in response to Nielsen nationwide reside+similar day large information plus panel program rankings, the 98th Oscars took a major dip, dropping to 17.86 million viewers.
The present, which aired on ABC and streamed reside on Hulu, was down round 2 million viewers from its 2025 numbers. For the 97th Oscars, Disney and Nielsen introduced that viewership reached 19.69 million, a five-year excessive for the present.
Past the general viewership, the 98th Oscars obtained a 3.92 ranking amongst Adults 18-49. In line with Disney, the present was the No. 1 primetime leisure telecast of the 2025-2026 season. Nevertheless, these numbers are additionally down from final 12 months’s present, which reached a 4.54 ranking and was pushed by cellular and PC viewing by youthful viewers.
In a brilliant spot, the 98th Oscars was the No. 1 most social program of the night time, with social impressions rising greater than 42% vs. final 12 months, totalling greater than 184 million, in response to Disney.
The viewership dip is considerably stunning, contemplating final 12 months’s Oscars obtained practically 19.7 million viewers whereas additionally coping with technical glitches in this system’s first 12 months streaming on Hulu. These glitches appeared to have been fastened this time round.
This 12 months’s Oscars additionally introduced again fan-favorite host Conan O’Brien, and fashionable movies, together with One Battle After One other and Sinners, had been the massive winners.
Concerning the present’s content material, Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After One other took house six Oscars, together with Greatest Image and Greatest Director. In the meantime, Sinners, which led with a document 16 nominations, had 4 awards, with Michael B. Jordan successful within the Greatest Actor class. The film additionally made historical past, with Autumn Durald Arkapaw turning into the primary girl to win the award for achievement in cinematography.
Regardless of the dip, Disney achieved an Oscars advert sellout heading into the occasion, with pricing up double-digit percent-wise over final 12 months.
