A freshly acquired report states that approximately 18.1 million viewers watched ABC's broadcast of the 97th Academy Awards last Sunday, reflecting a seven percent decline compared to the previous year.

This figure, derived from Nielsen's tracking of both linear viewers on ABC and Hulu livestreams, represents the first drop in viewership for the ceremony in four years. 

In 2021, the ceremony—held in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic—saw an all-time low of 10.4 million viewers. However, the Oscars experienced steady growth over the next three years, reaching 16.6 million viewers in 2022, 18.8 million in 2023, and 19.5 million in 2024.

Despite the decline, 18.1 million viewers still made the Oscars the most-watched primetime entertainment broadcast (excluding sports and news) of the 2024-2025 TV season. It also achieved the highest ratings among adults 18-49 this season with a 3.92 rating, a three percent increase from the previous year. Additionally, among adults aged 18-34, it marked the highest-rated Oscars in five years with a 3.17 rating.

Notably, its Hulu livestream encountered technical issues during the broadcast. Less than 30 minutes into the ceremony, over 34,000 users reported problems accessing the stream on Downdetector. At 5:48pm, nearly two hours into the event, Hulu Support's X account confirmed that service had been restored for affected users. However, problems resurfaced towards the end of the ceremony, just before the announcement of the Best Picture winner. 

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As the telecast, originally scheduled to end at 7:32pm, ran overtime, some viewers lost access to the livestream earlier than expected. It can be deduced that the overall viewership might have been slightly higher if these technical difficulties had not occurred. Additionally, since this is the first year Disney has simulcasted the Oscars on Hulu, streaming data is not included in the previous year's totals.

The ceremony was hosted by Conan O'Brien, marking his first time taking on the role, and he received favourable reviews for his performance on the Dolby stage. The night's biggest winner was the independent film "Anora", which took home Best Picture, as well as Mikey Madison's win for Best Actress and Sean Baker's victories in Best Director, Editing, and Original Screenplay. 

Following the Oscars, ABC aired a 30-minute preview for the eighth season of "American Idol". The lead-in from the awards show helped the singing competition series attract 5.9 million viewers, marking its largest season premiere in three years.