Whoopi Wants a 'Seven Hour' Oscars Ceremony Amid Controversy Over Cut Categories

Whoopi Goldberg stopped short of explicitly criticizing ABC for pushing for the 94th Academy Awards to cut eight craft categories from the live broadcast, but she did make her feelings known about the controversial decision. Monday morning on The View, Whoopi advocated for an even longer Oscars broadcast, and she insisted true "film lovers" appreciate the full show, regardless of its run time. "We've kvetched and moaned about the fact that the Oscars take seven hours to watch," she said. "Well, that was the beauty of it!"

For obvious reasons, The View co-hosts didn't address a report claiming that ABC threatened to cancel the Oscars telecast if 12 categories were not removed from the show, but they did discuss the backlash to the decision and producer Will Packer's promise that "nobody is going to be shortchanged" by the move. "Makeup and hair and original score, they are such an instrumental part of film," said Sunny Hostin. "And to not give them their due at that time, the pinnacle of their careers, there's something about it that makes me feel uncomfortable."

"They're getting rewarded. It's going to be cut into the live broadcast," clarified Whoopi, before returning to the topic at hand. She explained that "part of this is our fault as people who watch," as viewers have spent decades complaining that the show is too long. "You want to bitch and moan about for seven hours — how many more hours is this going to go on? Because it was you and your friends and whoever," said Whoopi. "Then we had issues because COVID stepped in, and then we couldn't show a lot of stuff, and a lot of people couldn't go. And then there's the last issue, which I really think has put a chokehold on this. And it's that every award show you see people in their gowns, in their hair, and they're doing the same thing. So you have nine award shows before you get to the Oscars, and people are fatigued by the time they get there."

DIRECTORS SPEAK OUT ON OSCARS DROPPING CATEGORIES: This year's #Oscars cut eight categories from the live broadcast, which will be given out earlier, edited down, and cut into the telecast — #TheView reacts as some directors spoke out against the decision. https://t.co/359xyCDnCS pic.twitter.com/p47wgZg2q0

— The View (@TheView) March 7, 2022

When Ana Navarro suggested that if the Oscars announced Best Picture "at the beginning, the people who are not interested in watching six hours" might tune in, Whoopi shut her down. "They tried that," said the four-time Oscars host. "The people who watch the Oscars — who watch the Oscars for the Oscars reason — they're the people who are the film lovers. Film lovers want to know Best Hair. Film lovers want to know Best Sound. They want that."

"But people who are just watching to see who's wearing what and who's there, those are the people that leave after the first 10 minutes of the show," she continued. "It's very difficult. And they're trying to find a way to get people to come back. But what I love that Will Packer feels is that the shows have to represent the love of film. You must understand the love of film to watch it."

As for viewers who complain that Oscar winners aren't blockbuster films, Whoopi insisted that the non-tentpoles are "what we're looking for" as voters. "We're looking for those movies that are doing things that show you the artistry, that give you all that information. You can find them, sometimes, in the big blockbusters, but not as often," said the EGOT winner. "It is a show about movie lovers. And if we can get all the movie lovers to come back to the Oscars this year — come back and see what they're trying to do so we don't lose the ability to have families sitting around saying, 'Damn, it's three and a half hours! How long is this going to be?!'"

Claire Spellberg Lustig is the Senior Editor at Primetimer and a scholar of The View. Follow her on Twitter at @c_spellberg.