The tradition that started in 1961 will be broken at this year’s Oscars.
The Oscars will take place on Sunday, March 12 at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. EPA/AOP
Party guests arriving at the Oscars stroll along the red carpet as usual. Except that this year, instead of red, the stars are walking on a champagne-colored carpet. The seemingly small change breaks the more than 60-year red carpet tradition.
The Oscar gala production team wanted a light carpet for this year’s event, the color of which would not conflict with the tent that will be erected over it. The tent is set up to protect the guests from the sun or possible rain.
– The sienna-colored tent and champagne-colored carpet were inspired by watching the sunset on a white-sand beach during the golden hour with a glass of champagne in hand, which evokes calm and tranquility, creative consultant for the production team Lisa Love says Your New York Timesaccording to
Champagne is the new red at the Oscars. EPA/AOP
Gala host Jimmy Kimmel joked at Thursday’s press conference that the color change was due to last year’s scandal, when Will Smith got on stage and slapped the host of the gala Chris Rock.
– I think the decision to use a champagne-colored carpet instead of red shows how confident we are that no blood will be spilled, Kimmel elaborated.
The red carpet was used for the first time in Hollywood already in 1922 at the opening of the Egyptian Theater movie theater. At the Oscars, it was introduced at the 1961 ceremony and has been used at every gala since.
During the past millennium, however, exceptions have been slowly made to the tradition. For example, red has been replaced by a gold carpet at the Emmy gala and a gray carpet at the Golden Globes.
Event planner Mindy Weiss says that, among other things, the change in fashion has influenced the change in the color of the carpet. According to him, the color of the carpet must match, for example, the dresses.
– The carpet should reflect fashion and not fight against it, says Weiss.