BAFTA Film Awards Pushed Back 2 Months

BAFTA has moved its EE British Academy Film Awards from Feb. 14 to April 11, 2021, it was announced on Monday.

“This change from the previously announced date of Feb. 14 acknowledges the impact of the global pandemic and accommodates an extended eligibility period. Further details on the ceremony will be announced later in the year,” said BAFTA.

The date for the 2022 Film Awards, currently on Feb. 13, is also under consideration.

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“The date for the 2022 Film Awards, announced last year as 13 February, is currently under consideration as part of the Awards Review (set up following this year’s Film nominations), and any changes will be published once the Review has been completed, alongside other findings and recommendations,” BAFTA said.

On Monday, it was also announced that the 93rd Academy Awards, which had initially been scheduled for Feb. 28, 2021, had been postponed until April 25.

The vote to delay the Oscars for two months was made at a special Monday-morning virtual meeting of the Academy’s Board of Governors, which made the move because of the theater closings and release-schedule changes due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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The eligibility date for the 93rd Oscars was also extended by two months, from the usual Dec. 31 deadline to February 28. This will be the first time since the sixth Oscars in 1934 that the eligibility period will not conform to a calendar year.

This year, the BAFTAs took place on Feb. 2, while the Oscars followed on Feb. 9.

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