2021 Oscars live stream: How to watch the awards show now

Oscars (Image credit: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)

After being delayed by two months due to the pandemic, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will hold the 2021 Academy Awards in Los Angeles and we have all the details on how you can watch the Oscars on TV or online.

The reason that the Academy decided to delay this year's awards show by two months was to accommodate films released all the way up to February of this year. Another big change is the fact that films released on streaming services and digital platforms will also be eligible to win an Oscar this year.

The 2021 Oscars will take place at both Union Station and the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles with only nominees, their guests, and presenters attending the event in person. There will also be a red carpet at the award show but it likely won't resemble the more over-the-top and glitzy red carpet events of past years.

As was the case last year, there won't be a host for this year's Academy Awards. There will be a number of stars present though with Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Steven Yeun, Renée Zellweger, Bong Joon-ho, and others all scheduled to present awards.

When it comes to the nominees, The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Mank, Minari, Nomadland, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal, and The Trial of the Chicago 7 have all been nominated for Best Picture.

Whether you're a big cinema fan that's already watched all of the films nominated this year or just want to tune in to see how this year's show will be different from previous ones, we'll show you exactly how to watch the 2021 Oscars from anywhere in the world.

2021 Oscars - When and where?

The 2021 Oscars will be broadcast live from Union Station and the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles beginning at 8pm ET / 5pm PT on Sunday, April 25. The 93rd Academy Awards will air on ABC in the U.S., CTV in Canada, Sky Cinema in the UK and on Channel 7 in Australia.

How to watch the Oscars in the U.S.

If you live in the U.S. and have a cable subscription or even a digital antenna, you'll be able to watch the Oscars on ABC beginning at 8pm ET / 5pm PT this Saturday. There will also be a pre-show titled "Oscars: Into the Spotlight" that will air at 6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT as well as an aftershow titled "Oscars: After Dark" which will air following the awards show at 11:30pm ET / 8pm PT. If you'd rather watch the Oscars online, you can do so on ABC's website but you will need to login with the credentials from your cable provider to do so.

Not interested in signing up for cable just to watch the Oscars this year? Don't worry as there are now a number of streaming services, all at different price points, that will give you access to ABC so you can watch the award show online. We've listed a few of our favorites below to make things easier for you.

Hulu with Live TV - $64.99 per month - As well as giving you access to ABC, the service also includes its own Hulu Originals and supports a wide variety of streaming devices.
YouTube TV - $65 per month - YouTube TV gives you access to ABC as well as over 70 other TV channels and a free 7-day trial is available.
AT&T TV Now - $69.99 per month - AT&T TV Now will give you access to ABC and the service allows you to watch over 45 live TV channels. You can also record up to 20 hours of content using its cloud DVR.
FuboTV - starting at $64.99 per month - FuboTV gives you access to ABC as well as over 80 other channels. The service also includes a 7-day free trial so you can test it out for yourself.

Get an Oscars live stream in Canada

Cinema fans in Canada will be able to watch the Oscars on CTV beginning at 8pm ET / 5pm PT as the network will air the award show at the same time as it premieres in the U.S. You can also watch the Oscars online on CTV's website but you will need to login with the credentials from your cable provider to do so.

Watch the Oscars in the UK

If you live in the UK and have a Sky subscription, you'll be able to watch the Oscars at 1am BST on Monday, April 26 on Sky Cinema as the channel has its own dedicated Oscars sub-channel.

For those that don't want to sign up for a lengthy Sky subscription to watch the 2021 Oscars, the entire awards show can be watched online by purchasing a pass from NOW (formerly Now TV) for just £11.99.

NOW Cinema Membership

Watch Sky Cinemas' coverage of the Oscars online with a NOW Cinema Membership. A whole month costs just $12 and there's also a 7-day free trial.

Livestream the Oscars in Australia for free

Australian viewers will be able to watch this year's Oscars for free beginning at 10am AEST / 8am AWST as the awards show is being broadcast over-the-air by Channel 7. You can also watch the Oscars on your mobile devices by downloading the 7Plus app.

Watch the Oscars from anywhere

We have all the details on how you can watch the 2021 Oscars in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Australia further down in this guide. However, if you want to watch the 93rd Academy Awards live when you're away from home, then you'll run into problems as your domestic coverage online from abroad will likely be geo-blocked.

That's where a VPN (Virtual Private Network) can really come in handy. They allow you to virtually change the IP address of your laptop, tablet, or mobile to one that's back in your home country which will let you watch as if you were back there.

VPNs are incredibly easy to use and have the added benefit of providing you with an additional layer of security when surfing the web. There are also a lot of options but we recommend ExpressVPN as our top pick due to its speed, security, and ease of use. The service can even be used on a wide array of operating systems and devices (e.g. iOS, Android, Smart TVs, Fire TV Stick, Roku, game consoles, etc). Sign up for ExpressVPN now and enjoy a 49% discount and 3 months FREE with an annual subscription. You can even test it out for yourself thanks to the service's 30-day money-back guarantee. Looking for more options?

Here are some other VPNs that are on sale right now.

2021 Oscar Awards Nominees

While you can see the full list of nominees for this year's Oscars on the official Oscars website, we've listed a few of the nominees from our favorite categories below:

Best Picture