Who really votes for the Oscars? The group behind the Academy Award winners

We may never know how the Oscars got their name, but at least we know who bestows the golden Academy Awards. You hear the film group thanked in almost every Oscar speech: It's the Academy.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the governing body overseeing the OG of award shows, has worked over the past decade to restructure the membership of film professionals who vote on the Oscars each year.

So before Hollywood stars weepily give thanks for the life-changing award at the 97th Academy Awards on March 2 (ABC and Hulu, 7 EST/4 PST), let's explore who really makes the awards possible.

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Who is in AMPAS, the group that votes on the Oscars?

In 2012, the Los Angeles Times unmasked AMPAS in a report that revealed the membership of 5,765 as 94% white and 77% male across 19 branches of filmmaking (including actors, writers and producers). Black members comprised about 2% of the prestigious group and Latinos made up less than 2%. The report showed that 86% of the members were 50 or older, with a median age of 62.

The #OscarsSoWhite hashtag went viral following the 2015 and 2016 nominations, when no people of color were nominated in the four acting categories.

Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced an ambitious membership overhaul with the goal of doubling the number of women and minority members by 2020. Academy CEO Dawn Hudson told USA TODAY in 2016 that the Board of Governors wanted to get the membership "closer to our moviegoing population and our United States population."

That same year, the Academy ushered in a diverse and large class of 683 new members from 59 countries, which included boldface names like Idris Elba, Morris Chestnut, John Boyega, America Ferrera, Alicia Vikander and "Black Panther" director Ryan Coogler.

In 2024, the Academy announced 487 new members, including Lily Gladstone ("Killers of the Flower Moon"), Greta Lee and Teo Yoo ("Past Lives") and Da'Vine Joy Randolph ("The Holdovers"). More than half of the year’s invitees came from outside the United States, reflecting the quest for global voices.

Including the 2024 class, the AMPAS population stands at 10,894 members (9,905 voting members) and consists of 35% members identifying as women and 20% from underrepresented ethnic and racial communities.

How does Oscar voting work?

The Oscars are awarded in 23 categories (soon to be 24, as achievement in casting will be introduced for 2026's 98th Oscars). Members of the corresponding branches determine most of their own group nominations. The actors branch, for example, chose the group of five vying for best actor, best actress and the corresponding supporting actors. The screenwriters chose the candidates for the two writing categories (best adapted screenplay and best original screenplay). And so on. The entire voting membership selects the 10 nominations for best picture.

When it comes to voting for the actual Oscars, all members vote for all categories, including for the coveted best picture. It's all done online with no paper ballots. Members are strongly encouraged to watch all the movies being considered, with special screenings set up in theaters during awards season and at home through a special screening portal. But it's impossible to enforce full movie-watching compliance.

How does Oscar best picture voting work?

For most categories, it's a simple matter of the most votes winning the award. Not the best picture award, however. The top prize features a complicated ranked choice system known as the "preferential ballot," which is meant to ensure that the winning movie is the one most widely admired by the electorate.

Members rank their best picture picks − from 1 to 10, since there are 10 nominees − from most favorite to least favorite. If a movie secures more than 50% of the best picture votes, it's the winner. However, this usually doesn't happen in the first round.

Without a majority, the movie with the fewest votes is eliminated from the ballot. The members who voted for the eliminated film as their top choice have their votes added to the film that was next on their list. This process continues until one movie receives that magical 50% and is deemed the winner.

All award votes are kept secret to everyone except for the select PricewaterhouseCoopers accountants making the strictly confidential tallies. The results in the sealed golden envelope are a surprise to everyone from the highest-ranking Academy member to the TV audience − and, of course, the winner who accepts the Oscar onstage.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who votes for the Oscars? The group behind the Academy Awards