Oscars Add New Category For Best Casting, To Be Given From 2026

The Oscars are introducing a new category for the first time in over 20 years. The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences declared on Thursday, February 8, that after decades of petitions, the organization will at last honor casting directors during its annual awards ceremony. The Oscars will present a yearly, competitive Academy Award for achievement in casting starting with the 2026 ceremony, which means that the award will be given for movies released in 2025.

The Academy issues a statement 

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang issued a  statement and said, “Casting directors play an essential role in filmmaking, and as the Academy evolves, we are proud to add casting to the disciplines that we recognize and celebrate. We congratulate our Casting Directors Branch members on this exciting milestone and their commitment and diligence throughout this process.”

Along with the full 98th Academy Awards rules, category rules for eligibility, and voting for the inaugural award will be revealed in April 2025. At a later time, the Academy's Board of Governors and administrative leadership will decide on the details of the award presentation.

Previous addition to the Oscars category 

When it comes to creating new categories, the Academy leans conservatively. The Best Animated Feature Film Oscar was the last one to be added in 2001. A new category for achievement in "popular" films was dropped by the Academy in 2018 in response to criticism from the general public and certain Academy members.

The casting directors have been demanding for the casting category since the late 1990s. However,  it did not materialize as it was not widely supported at the time.