What a Calendar 2026 Theatrical Release Means for Streaming Films at the 99th Oscars

A streaming film can compete for an Oscar only if it meets the Academy’s theatrical-release rules. For the 99th Academy Awards, those rules begin with a qualifying theatrical release made in calendar 2026, between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31. Under the 97th terms, Best Picture added a second set of theatrical requirements on top of that base.

The Academy’s rules for the 99th Awards were approved in an announcement that sets the 2026 window and the submission deadlines. The run terms described below come from the Academy’s standards for the 97th Awards and from TheWrap’s report on them. The 99th announcement does not set out a metro list or run lengths for the Best Picture category.

The 2026 Window and Submission Deadlines

The 99th announcement requires a feature to have a qualifying theatrical release between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2026. A release outside those dates does not meet that requirement.

The window and the deadlines do different jobs. The window sets when the release must happen. The deadlines set when a film must be submitted for consideration.

Best Picture has two submission deadlines. The first is Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, and the final is Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. Both dates are shared with the General Entry categories, Animated Feature Film and the Representation and Inclusion Standards Entry (RAISE) form. As of this article’s date, the first deadline has passed and the final one is 17 days away.

Other categories run on their own calendar. The first deadline for Animated Short, Documentary Feature, Documentary Short and Live Action Short is Aug. 13, 2026. The final deadlines are Oct. 8 for the Animated Short, Documentary Short and Live Action Short categories, and Oct. 15 for Documentary Feature. Original Song is due Oct. 14, and Original Score on Nov. 4.

For the 97th Awards, TheWrap lists the Best Picture deadlines as Sept. 12 and Nov. 14, 2024. Those dates belong to the earlier cycle for films released in 2024.

Best Picture Deadlines for the 99th Awards
The Academy lists Sept. 17, 2026 as the first Best Picture submission deadline and Nov. 12, 2026 as the final one. The qualifying theatrical window runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2026.

The Initial Run: One Week in a Qualifying Metro

For the 97th Awards, the first Best Picture requirement was a one-week theatrical release in one of six U.S. qualifying metropolitan areas. TheWrap lists them as Los Angeles County, New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas-Fort Worth. Dallas-Fort Worth is the newest addition to that list.

The same report says drive-in theaters no longer count toward qualification. Under those terms, drive-in screenings do not count toward the initial run.

The 97th standards applied to films released in 2024. The expanded run, covered in the next section, was measured after this initial run.

The Expanded Run That Best Picture Adds

Best Picture carried a second requirement on top of the initial run. Under the 97th terms, a film needed seven days in 10 of the top 50 U.S. markets. The days could be consecutive or non-consecutive.

The Board of Governors approved the expanded Best Picture rules in June 2023, according to TheWrap. The report, dated April 22, 2024, covers an Academy announcement made that Monday.

The expanded run had to be completed no later than 45 days after the film’s initial release in 2024. The Academy’s 97th standards give that limit.

Releases outside the U.S. could count toward two of those 10 markets. The qualifying non-U.S. markets were the top 15 international theatrical markets plus the film’s home territory.

Taken in order, the steps were a one-week initial run, then seven days in 10 of the top 50 U.S. markets, completed within 45 days of the initial release.

Late-year films followed a separate track. Distributors whose expansions came after Jan. 10, 2025 had to submit release plans to the Academy for verification, and the planned expanded run had to be completed by Jan. 24, 2025. Both dates are 97th figures. No late-year release-plan date for 2026 has been announced.

TheWrap also reports that eligibility required a confidential RAISE form and meeting two of four standards. The same report says distributors or producing teams should submit for PGA Mark Certification or awards determination no later than the first commercial screening in the qualifying run. These are 97th terms.

Streaming Titles and the Theatrical Test

The 99th rules describe eligibility in terms of a qualifying theatrical release. The 99th announcement sets out no separate route for streaming, video-on-demand or home-entertainment titles.

TheWrap’s report ties the expanded-run rules to a longer shift. It says the Academy relaxed or, in some cases, removed theatrical rules during the COVID-19 pandemic, and has gradually reinstated them as the industry shifts toward streaming.

The report’s author, Steve Pond, calls the new rules the strongest statement yet of the Academy’s commitment to theatrical exhibition. Pond also describes the Best Picture requirements as particularly restrictive.

The connection to streaming comes from TheWrap’s framing. The 99th terms state the requirement as a theatrical release.

For the 99th Academy Awards, those rules begin with a qualifying theatrical release made in calendar 2026.

The International Feature Film Festival Route

The International Feature Film category has a festival route. Under the 99th terms, a film can be submitted for consideration after winning one of six listed awards: the Golden Bear for Best Film at the Berlin International Film Festival, the Busan Award for Best Film at the Busan International Film Festival, the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, the Platform Award at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival.

The International Feature Film submission deadline is Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026. As of this article’s date, that deadline has passed.

For the 97th cycle, TheWrap reports that the international eligibility period ran from Nov. 1, 2023 to Sept. 30, 2024.

Other Rule Changes in the 99th Announcement

The 99th announcement also changes several category rules. Performers may be nominated for multiple performances if they place in the top five votes. Only roles credited in legal billing and performed by humans with consent are eligible.

The maximum number of statuettes for Casting rises from two to three, and the Cinematography preliminary shortlist is 20 films. Screenplays must be human-authored, and the Academy may request more information about how generative AI was used and about human authorship.

The announcement states that all rules, regulations and dates are subject to change.