As the disastrous Los Angeles wildfires continue to spread almost a week after they began, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has decided to reconfigure the Oscar season timetable for a second time out of sensitivity to the SoCal community, which is home to about 60% of its over 10,000 members. Four of the film Academy’s board of governors, Lynette Howell Taylor, Brooke Breton, Mark P. Stoeckinger, Jinko Gotoh, and its former CEO, Dawn Hudson have lost their homes to the fires.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang shared in a statement on Monday that the 97th Academy Awards has not moved from its date of Sunday, March 2, 2025, which is just over 45 days away. However, the Oscar nominations voting window, which began at 9 a.m. PT on Jan. 8, and was supposed to end at 5 p.m. PT on Jan. 12, was extended to 5 p.m. on Jan. 14 and then extended again to 5 p.m. PT on Jan. 17.

The Oscar nominations announcement was originally scheduled for 5:30 a.m. PT on Jan. 17, then it was extended to an unspecified time on Jan. 19. It will now take place at 5:30 a.m. PT on Jan. 23. It will be televised, as usual, but there will not be any press in the audience this year.

The Oscar Nominees Luncheon, originally scheduled for Feb 10, has been canceled. Nominees will still be invited to small dinners, closer to the date of the Oscars ceremony, with others who are nominated in their category, as they have done in recent years. The Scientific and Technical Awards originally scheduled for Feb. 18 have been postponed. It will be rescheduled at a later date.

The decisions were made in close consultation with the Academy’s 55-person board of governors. The Academy, The Hollywood Reporter reports, has donated $750,000 to the MPTF to help those affected by the fires. The Academy is still trying to find a middle ground between board member Breton who thinks the show must go on and others such as Jean Smart who suggested that awards season activities should be significantly curbed, with funds redirected toward fire relief efforts.

It seems like the Oscars will serve additionally as a telethon, of sorts, to raise funds for fire relief and celebrate the first responders.

Click here for the full statement from Kramer and Yang.