Oscars Add Best Stunt Design Category

Breaking: Stunt Design Finally Gets Its Oscar Moment

After a hundred years of exclusion, the Academy Awards will finally recognize excellence in stunt design starting with the 2028 ceremony. The Academy's Board of Governors announced today that the new competitive category will honor films released in 2027.

A Century-Old Oversight Corrected

The monumental decision brings Hollywood's unsung stunt heroes into the Oscar spotlight. While celebrating the announcement, the Academy highlighted three stunt-heavy films - Everything Everywhere All at Once, RRR, and Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol - none of which qualify for the inaugural award.

"From cinema's earliest days, stunt work has been fundamental to filmmaking," stated Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang. "We're proud to celebrate these technical artists whose innovations deserve this recognition."

The Long Road to Recognition

The new category culminates decades of advocacy—between 1991 and 2012, stunt professionals pushed unsuccessfully for awards consideration annually. The Academy last expanded its competitive categories in 2023 with the Casting Achievement Oscar, debuting at the 2026 ceremony.

Complete eligibility requirements will be announced in 2027 when qualifying films begin production.

The stunt Oscar breakthrough represents a watershed moment for Hollywood's most physically demanding craft. Unlike most technical categories which require annual review, stunt performers endured thirty years of rejected proposals before achieving this historic recognition.

The 100th Academy Awards in 2028 will now feature cinema's first official celebration of stunt coordinators and designers—professionals whose death-defying work has fueled movie magic since the silent era.