The organization behind the is for the first time addressing the use of artificial intelligence in performances and scripts for the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday released updates across many categories, stressing the importance of human authorship while not banning AI.
The new rules also include significant changes to the much-criticized expanding eligibility to include films that won top qualifying awards from prestigious film festivals like Cannes, Venice and Toronto.
鈥淎s we do every year, we made a lot of, we think, really smart and progressive changes,鈥� film academy told The Associated Press. 鈥淥bviously, as the academy becomes more global, we need to think about how we are inviting international films into the Oscars conversation.鈥�
AI and the Oscars
As part of its annual review of Oscar eligibility rules, the academy is tackling one of the global filmmaking community’s biggest concerns: generative artificial intelligence.
The new rules state that 鈥渢he tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination鈥� and that the academy and each branch 鈥渨ill judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award.鈥� They鈥檙e also reserving the right to request more information from the filmmaking team about the nature of the use of AI and 鈥渉uman authorship.鈥�
鈥淗umans have to be at the center of the creative process,鈥� said academy president . 鈥淎s AI continues to evolve, our conversations around AI will do so along with that. But for the academy, we are always going to put human authorship at the center of our awards eligibility process.鈥�
When it comes to the eligibility of performances, only roles 鈥渄emonstrably performed by humans with their consent鈥� will be considered. The organization declined to comment on whether the upcoming performance would be eligible as the filmmakers have not yet submitted it for consideration.
A likeness is not an actor, for one, but it might also depend on how in the film: As Val Kilmer or something else? One could also take Andy Serkis as Gollum as an example of a human collaborating with technology for the final performance.
鈥淲e will review that on a case-by-case basis,鈥� Kramer said. 鈥淲e, like everybody in our industry and world, we will be assessing this every year.鈥�
There is less ambiguity in the screenplay categories, where the rules state that 鈥渟creenplays must be human-authored to be eligible.鈥�
The film academy has often had to review its standards to meet the technological advances of the moment, whether it be sound, color or computer generated imagery (CGI).
Sweeping changes to international film eligibility
As its membership has grown much more international, there have been increasing calls for an overhaul to the international film category, which had been continually criticized as unjust, outdated and subject to political interference. That’s led to independent and dissident filmmakers often pointedly not being submitted to represent the country they鈥檙e from.
Last year鈥檚 Palme d鈥橭r-winner at Cannes, for instance, was from Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, was not submitted as Iran鈥檚 official entry for the 98th Academy Awards, but France鈥檚.
Under the new rules, 鈥淚t Was Just an Accident鈥� could be considered eligible because it won the top Cannes prize and not because a country chose to submit it. In addition to the Palme d鈥橭r at Cannes, the and the Platform award at Toronto, other festivals with eligible qualifying awards will also include the Berlin International Film Festival鈥檚 Golden Bear, the Busan International Film Festival鈥檚 best film award and the Sundance Film Festival鈥檚 World Cinema Grand Jury Prize.
All the international films will also be credited as the nominee, not the country or region, and the award will be accepted by the filmmaker. The director鈥檚 name will also be listed on the Oscar plaque, 鈥渁fter the film title and country if applicable.鈥�
鈥淭hat really reflects our desire to honor the film鈥檚 creative team. That is how we approach other categories,鈥� Kramer said. 鈥淎nd as we become more global, as the filmmaking community becomes more global. I think it鈥檚 really about a focus on the filmmakers and less a focus of the country.鈥�
Actors can now be nominated for more than one award in a category
The acting branch is catching up with the rest of the academy in allowing an actor to be nominated for more than one performance in a single category. If, say, this year鈥檚 best actor winner Michael B. Jordan has two extraordinary leading performances in two different films in 2026, he could possibly get two best actor nominations.
This is standard practice in the other categories. In 2001, at the 73rd Oscars, Steven Soderbergh was nominated for best director for both 鈥淭raffic鈥� and 鈥淓rin Brockovich,鈥� winning the prize for the former.
And about those original songs in the end credits
The organization also clarified the eligibility of original songs used during a film鈥檚 end credits. For songs in which the first music cue plays over the end credits, that song must overlap with at least the film鈥檚 last 15 seconds before the credits roll in order to be considered eligible. was a key part of 鈥淜Pop Demon Hunters鈥� and used several times throughout the film.
鈥淲e never stop looking at ways to improve our eligibility process,鈥� Taylor said.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
