Academy Awards organizers said safety preparations were routine and thorough after news of the FBI warning surfaced ahead of this year’s Oscars ceremony.
The Oscars ceremony rolled out the red carpet in Hollywood early Wednesday, with host Conan O’Brien and media reporters arriving at the venue for the annual film extravaganza. But security is on high alert after the FBI warned California law enforcement about a possible retaliatory drone attack by Iran targeting the West Coast.
In recent days, the FBI notified law enforcement agencies across California that Iran may retaliate against U.S. military action by launching drones toward the West Coast, according to an alert reported by ABC News.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department officials declined to comment on the memo, but said in a statement to the LA Times that the department continues to “operate at a high level of preparedness and remain on heightened alert.”
At a press conference Wednesday with the creative team for the 98th Oscars, executive producer Raj Kapoor answered questions about the safety of attendees and guests.
“I feel like we have one of the best teams in the industry on this show in every way, and that’s because of our security team,” said Kapur. “So, of course, we monitor what’s going on in the world every year. We have the support of the FBI and the LAPD, and we work closely together.”
“This show has to run like clockwork,” he said. “But we want everyone who comes to this show, who witnesses the show, even who is a fan of the show, when they’re standing outside the barricades, we want everyone to feel safe and protected and welcome. We want to make sure that that’s conveyed.” It’s our job as a production team to make sure that we do that, and that really applies to us in this very close-knit relationship. We have a whole other support team. It’s something we don’t take lightly and it’s a huge responsibility.”
According to Variety’s sources who attended the red carpet rollout, security has been stepped up, but it’s not very visible.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had no comment.
A red carpet walkthrough is scheduled for Thursday with talent publicists and studio representatives.
The 98th Academy Awards Ceremony will be held at Ovation Hollywood’s Dolby Theater. The show will be broadcast in more than 200 territories around the world.
The ceremony, officiated by O’Brien, will be broadcast live on ABC and streamed on Hulu on Sunday, March 15th at 7pm ET/4pm PT, with the official red carpet show beginning at 6:30pm ET/3:30pm PT.
