The world's wealthiest individual, Elon Musk, has responded to the decline in Oscars viewership following the 98th Academy Awards, which was hosted by comedian Conan O'Brien. According to figures released on Tuesday, the number of live viewers in the United States tuning in to watch the Oscars dropped by nine percent compared to last year.
On Sunday, approximately 17.9 million people witnessed the political thriller "One Battle After Another," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, take home the top prize at Hollywood's premier awards ceremony. This included viewers watching on the ABC broadcast network and Hulu, both of which are owned by Disney.
The 98th Academy Awards was hosted by comedian Conan O'Brien and featured musical segments that paid tribute to the Netflix phenomenon "K-Pop Demon Hunters" and the box-office hit "Sinners," Ryan Coogler's meditation on race relations in America through the lens of vampires. Michael B. Jordan, who played twin brothers Smoke and Stack in "Sinners," won the Best Actor Oscar after a tight race where Timothee Chalamet was expected to triumph for his portrayal of an unlikable ping pong player in "Marty Supreme."
The Academy Awards broadcast, which once routinely drew audiences of 40 million, saw its viewership plummet to 10.4 million in the pandemic-stricken year of 2021. Since then, it had been gradually recovering its audience until this year.
Commenting on the decline, Elon Musk tweeted, "Winning an Oscar has become an embarrassment."
