For this Sunday’s Academy Awards, ABC is bringing back newly renamed “The Oscars: All Access,” a free live-streaming companion show with red-carpet highlights, backstage footage and live look-ins of the main event.
“The Oscars: All Access” will be hosted from the red carpet by actress-singer Sofia Carson (of Disney Channel’s “Descendants”) and Ben Lyons, an ESPN radio commentator and frequent guest on “SportsCenter” (pictured above).
Facebook Live is the exclusive social platform broadcasting the live stream from Facebook.com/TheAcademy. The show also will be available on Oscars.com, the ABC app, ABCNews.com, and Comcast’s X1 set-top, Xfinity TV app and myxfinity.com, starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on Sunday, Feb. 26.
On Facebook, fans will be able to submit questions to the hosts and talent on “The Oscars: All Access” in real time. In addition, the Academy will present exclusive video footage on Facebook of this year’s Oscar nominees, including Pharrell, Ruth Negga, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Damien Chazelle. The content will be on the Academy’s page as well as in the Facebook mobile app’s video tab — the first awards show content featured on video tab.
“Working with Facebook to extend the reach of ‘The Oscars: All Access’ enables us to further drive water cooler discussion and encourage people to tune in to the live awards show broadcast,” John Frelinghuysen, EVP of digital media, strategy and business development for Disney-ABC Television Group, said in a statement.
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In the live stream, ABC will simulcast select moments from the broadcast show in real time. However, the full 89th Oscars telecast, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, will be available online only to subscribers of participating pay-TV providers via ABC’s apps and ABC.com, and limited to markets with ABC-owned local stations and Hearst Television affiliates.
The talent lineup for ABC’s “The Oscars: All Access” — which the network previously called “Oscars Backstage” — includes “Good Morning America” and ESPN correspondent Chris Connelly, who returns as the official greeter of the Oscars red carpet. Actor Troy Gentile (ABC’s “The Goldbergs”) and ESPN commentator Adnan Virk will provide dispatches from various locations.
The digital show will feature footage from 20 cameras on the red carpet, backstage and in the audience of Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre.
