Oscars 2018: Six new rules to help avoid another Academy Awards ceremony envelope gaffe
It's hard to forget THAT extraordinary blunder at last year’s Oscars which led to La La Land being awarded Best Picture instead of Moonlight.
There followed shock and awe with many a dropped jaw as the drama of "envelopegate" unfolded.
It turned out that presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway had been handed the wrong winner's card by auditors at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Unfortunately, the La La Land team had already begun giving their victory speech before the mistake was revealed.
Tim Ryan, US chairman of PwC, who are responsible for ensuring the voting and awards process is accurate and fair, has confirmed extra precautions are being taken to avoid a repeat of the embarrassing debacle.
What are the key changes?
Celebrity envelope and category check
Before going on stage celebrity presenters announcing awards will have to confirm they have both the correct envelope and correct category.
Last year, Warren Beatty nervously checked the card inside the Best Film envelope having apparently realised something was wrong. He then passed it over to Faye Dunaway who read out the only film name on it - La La Land.
PWC producers replaced and two become three
Previously two people were in charge of looking after the top-secret list of winners and handing the correct envelopes to the presenters.
This time round there will be three people overseeing the process.
Unsurprisingly, the team will not include Martha Ruiz and Brian Cullinan who were held responsible for the 2017 gaffe. It was Cullinan who handed the wrong envelope to Beatty.
The pair still work for PwC but have been replaced by Rick Rosas and Kimberly Bourdon who will be the onstage partners overseeing the envelope handovers.
A third person will also sit with organisers in the show’s control room.
Memorised list of winners
The PwC producer sitting in the show's control room will have a complete list of all the winners. They will have to memorise the list as well.
Mobile phones and social media ban
The PwC team will be banned from using mobile phones and social media at the ceremony which could be a distraction.
Cullinan had reportedly posted a backstage picture of actress Emma Stone on Twitter minutes before the envelope mix-up.
The "singular focus will be on the show and delivering the correct envelopes," PwC said.
Rehearsals just in case things don't go to plan
This year, the PwC team have rehearsed what to do in the event something goes wrong and quickly - last year it took far too long for the mistake to be rectified.
The 90th Academy Awards ceremony will take place in Los Angeles on March 4.