The 96th Academy Awards ceremony is set to take place this Sunday at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, with the broadcast scheduled to air at 7 p.m. Eastern standard time, an hour earlier than its traditional 8 p.m. slot. The official pre-show will commence at 6:30 p.m. Eastern.

Why has the Oscars' timing changed?

The decision to move the Oscars to an earlier time slot stems from ABC's strategic move to attract a larger audience. Historically, the telecast has faced challenges with maintaining viewership, often stretching past 11 p.m., resulting in a drop-off in East Coast viewers around the third hour.

Recent years have witnessed a decline in Oscars viewership, although there have been occasional upticks. Last year's telecast saw a modest increase, reaching 20 million viewers, up 8% from the previous year. However, it's been nearly a decade since the Oscars brought in over 40 million viewers, according to Statista research. The earlier hour aims to recapture pre-pandemic viewership levels and sustain interest in the ceremony.

What more do we know about the 96th Academy Awards?

Renowned late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel is set to host the ceremony for the fourth time, having previously hosted in 2017, 2018, and last year. Leading the nominations is Oppenheimer, partially filmed in New Jersey, with an impressive 13 nominations, including Best Picture. Following closely is Poor Things with 11 nominations, and Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon with 10 nominations.

A star-studded lineup of presenters adds to the excitement of this year's Oscars, including Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Lee Curtis, Bad Bunny, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Al Pacino, Zendaya fresh off the "Dune: Part Two" premiere, and Rutherford native Ramy Youssef.

Tune in Sunday, March 10, an hour earlier than usual, at 7 p.m. ET on ABC, as Hollywood's finest gather for a night of glamour, celebration, and recognition of some historic cinematic works.