Academy President David Rubin announced today that Jesse Collins, Stacey Sher, and Steven Soderbergh will produce the 93rd Oscars.
“The upcoming Oscars is the perfect occasion for innovation and for re-envisioning the possibilities for the awards show. This is a dream team who will respond directly to these times,” Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson said in a statement. “The Academy is excited to work with them to deliver an event that reflects the worldwide love of movies and how they connect us and entertain us when we need them the most.”
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Collins is an Emmy-nominated producer who has helmed the Grammy Awards, BET Awards, Black Girls Rock!, and the Soul Train Awards. Sher is an Oscar-nominated producer, and Soderbergh is an Oscar-winning filmmaker.
“We’re thrilled and terrified in equal measure. Because of the extraordinary situation we’re all in, there’s an opportunity to focus on the movies and the people who make them in a new way, and we hope to create a show that really FEELS like the movies we all love,” the trio said in a statement.
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The Academy is clearly making good on promises to increase its diversity and inclusion efforts across the board, and this latest move is quite a statement.
“Jesse, Stacey and Steven are the ideal storytellers to harness the uniqueness of this moment and celebrate the artists who are dedicated to telling stories that stand the test of time,” Craig Erwich, president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, said in a statement. “By enlisting this incredibly talented team of television and film producers, I’m confident we will deliver a prestigious event that will be remembered for years to come.”
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Collins has produced tons of important television series and specials including John Lewis: Celebrating a Hero, Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices,” Change Together: From the March on Washington to Today, Sunday Best, American Soul, Rhythm + Flow and The New Edition Story. He earned an Emmy nomination for the 61st Grammy Awards in 2019. He has also been tapped to co-executive produce the upcoming Grammy Awards and executive produce the Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show in 2021. He is the founder and CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment, a full-service television and film entertainment production company.
The 93rd Oscars will be held on Sunday, April 25, 2021, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
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