Beyonce, Billie Eilish, Finneas, Reba McEntire, And Sebastian Yatra Set To Perform At The Oscars
After being shunted off to the Oscar pre-show last year, the performances for Best Original Song are set to rejoin the live telecast of the Academy Awards. Four of the five nominees will continue the Oscar tradition by singing each song throughout the night, and if you're wondering why ABC — a network that is dangerously obsessed with finding new ways to shorten the telecast — has decided to sprinkle these back in, just take a look at the big names this move promises. This year's nominees include Beyoncé and Billie Eilish! They're exactly the kind of superstars who can help the Academy chase their dream of boosted ratings, right? Surely the people who weren't planning to tune in will now endure the whole show rather than catching the clips on YouTube!
Per Variety, the 94th Academy Awards now include Beyoncé performing "Be Alive" from "King Richard," along with Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas performing the latest James Bond theme "No Time to Die." Viewers will also get the chance to see Sebastián Yatra perform the "Encanto" song "Dos Oruguitas," while Reba McEntire will perform "Somehow You Do," the Diane Warren–penned song from "Four Good Days." This marks Yatra's first performance on the telecast, but all the other nominees are Oscar veterans: Beyoncé has performed at the Oscars on three prior occasions, McEntire performed back in 1991, and Eilish and Finneas performed the In Memoriam segment two years ago.
Four out of five nominees... and Bruno!
Missing from this lineup is Van Morrison, who sang the fifth song "Down to Joy" from "Belfast." Morrison was invited to perform but reportedly turned the offer down, citing his touring schedule. Of course, Morrison is also a known anti-vaxxer and while the Oscars have opted not to make vaccinations a requirement for all, Morrison is currently in Scotland. Being unvaccinated would potentially complicate his ability to reenter the US and attend the show between scheduled live performances. If it's any consolation, there will probably be more than enough anti-vaxxers in attendance to make up for his absence! As previously reported, the Oscars will require all attendees in the audience to show proof of vaccination and at least two negative PCR tests, but there is some leeway for performers and presenters, who are only required to undergo the testing.
Now I know what you're thinking — five nominees but only four performances?! What a travesty! But worry not, the Oscars producers have thought of everything ... Except for the time they forgot to invite Rachel Zegler. But performance-wise, another song will take center stage during the telecast: in case you managed to do the impossible and finally free your mind from the very persistent clutches of Lin Manuel Miranda, prepare to spiral right back into insanity with the first live performance of "We Don't Talk About Bruno." Despite not being nominated (or even submitted) for the Oscars, "We Don't Talk About Bruno" is set to continue its reign of terror with an epic performance on the Oscars stage. No details have been released per the timing of these performances, but opening the show with one of the world's most popular songs seems a likely plan.
The 94th Academy Awards are Sunday, March 27, 2022, and will be televised live on ABC at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. American Sign Language (ASL) provided by Certified Deaf Interpreters, live closed captioning and audio description will be available during the live broadcast.