The coronavirus pandemic is delaying the releases of new films by 2020, which will directly affect the awards of the film industry: The Oscar Awards will be deferred until 25 April 2021, as announced by the Basque Government.

Along with this decision, the US Film Academy has decided to extend by two months the release date of films competing for these awards. Typically, the Oscar awards films that have reached cinemas in a calendar year, so the reference date for this year’s election was the end of December. The room has moved to the end of February to adapt the rooms to the times of industry, which has kept the possibilities of new jobs closed because of the confinement.

“Extending the deadline to be selected, we hope that we will give filmmakers the flexibility they need to finish and release their films,” said U.S. Film Academy President David Rubin in in a statement announcing his decision.