Updated
2025-02-25T14:31:01Z
- The 2025 Academy Awards will air on Sunday, March 2, on ABC.
- The ceremony alone costs $57.7 million, WalletHub estimated.
- A star's Oscars look costs $1.5 million on average — in 2014, Cate Blanchett's cost $18.1 million.
2024 was a big year for film.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande starred as Elphaba and Glinda in Jon M. Chu's "Wicked" and famously held space for the lyrics of "Defying Gravity." Timothée Chalamet embarked on one of the most chaotic press tours for his turn as Bob Dylan in "A Complete Unknown." And the cast of "Emilia Pérez" has been marred in a number of controversies since the film premiered.
These movies account for three of the 10 best picture nominees at the 97th Academy Awards, set to take place on Sunday, March 2, at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.
This year's awards season is set against the backdrop of the devastating wildfires that tore through the greater Los Angeles area. In January, Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang wrote to members, per Deadline, "We will reflect on the recent events while highlighting the strength, creativity, and optimism that defines Los Angeles and our industry."
From red-carpet looks to the costs of the statues, WalletHub's annual Oscars report found that honoring the biggest achievements in film comes with a high price tag.
Here's a breakdown of everything it costs to celebrate the movies in true Hollywood fashion, according to the personal-finance company's report.
The 2025 Academy Awards ceremony will cost an estimated $57.7 million.
WalletHub's 2025 report estimated that it will take $57.7 million to put on the Academy Awards.
This is just a fraction of the money spent by the actual nominees, though. "Wicked" — which is nominated in 10 categories this year, including best picture — had a budget of $150 million, higher than all the other best picture nominees except "Dune: Part Two."
Each gold-plated Oscar award costs $400.
The estimated cost of each 24-karat gold-plated statue awarded to winners is about $400.
The Academy gives out awards in 24 categories, and a winner is not allowed to sell their statue without first offering to sell it to the Academy for $1, according to its policy.
Couples must reportedly pay $83,000 for tickets to the Vanity Fair Oscar Party.
Each year, the highly anticipated, ultra-glamorous event hosted by Vanity Fair is attended by Hollywood's biggest stars, often after they've had a change of wardrobe.
The Oscar goodie bags contain gifts like skincare, luxury getaways, and snacks, and are worth $170,000.
WalletHub estimates that the value of each goodie bag given to Oscar nominees is $170,000.
But, the "Everybody Wins" bags aren't actually gifted by the Academy, they're the work of LA-based marketing agency Distinctive Assets, PRNewswire reported.
Some of this year's gifts include the full line of Miage skincare products, a four-night stay in the Maldives, a five-star hotel stay in Barcelona, and more than $1 million of "personalized disaster recovery services from Bright Harbor."
"While our gifts may be famous for being fun and fabulous, they also serve as a means to elevate small businesses, minority-owned brands, female entrepreneurs and companies that give back. This year, on the heels of the historically tragic LA fires, we have found even more ways that our celebrity swag can do good in our community," Distinctive Assets founder Lash Fary said, per PRNewswire.
He added, "Whether they pamper themselves or share these bountiful gifts as a care package for a friend who may have recently lost their home, we give these gifts not based on the recipients' needs but out of a desire to brighten someone's day and to acknowledge a job well done."
It costs $10 million to complete the look of an A-list actress for the Oscars.
While A-listers wear multi-million-dollar looks, the cost of dressing a first-timer at the Oscars is $266,000, WalletHub reported.
Because the cost of a look varies based on a person's stardom, the average cost of a look at the Oscars is about $1.5 million.
In 2014, Cate Blanchett made Oscars history when she wore an $18.1 million look; but her $100,000 Armani Privé gown was the least expensive element of her outfit — her jewelry alone was estimated to cost $18 million, per The Hollywood Reporter.
The only person to wear even more expensive jewelry was Lady Gaga in 2019, whose 128-carat yellow diamond Tiffany & Co. necklace cost more than $30 million.
A 30-second advertisement that premieres during the Oscars costs close to $2 million.
Last year, an average of 21 million people tuned in to watch the show, WalletHub reported. That was a 6% increase from 2023, so it's no surprise that running an ad during the live event's commercial breaks is expensive.
It costs $1.95 million to buy 30-seconds of ad time during the Oscars, WalletHub reported, which is 72% less than the $7 million it cost to run an ad during the Super Bowl.
Hollywood spends upwards of $100 million on awards-season lobbying.
Turns out, winning an Oscar requires much more work than just releasing a movie.
In 2023, The New York Times reported on the competitive nature of Oscars campaigns, in which professional strategists seek to shape public opinion on films, actors, and opponents.
WalletHub estimates that more than $100 million is spent on lobbying each year — that's more than the budgets of best picture nominees "Anora," "The Brutalist," "A Complete Unknown," and "I'm Still Here" combined.
It costs $20,000 to stream one film for voters to judge.
The Academy has gone digital. Rather than paying millions of dollars to send physical copies of the year's nominated pictures to voters, the group has turned to streaming, which costs $20,000 per film, WalletHub reported.
