Oscars producer speaks out on 'KPop Demon Hunters' speech moment

Anna Kaufman, USA TODAYTue, March 17, 2026 at 2:55 PM UTC

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The Oscars producers are responding to backlash over cutting one acceptance speech short.

During the March 15 Academy Awards, the songwriters behind "Golden," a viral mega-hit from Netflix's "KPop Demon Hunters," were stopped from finishing their acceptance speech for best original song after the allotted time ran out. After singer EJAE spoke, she stepped aside to let her fellow artists say their thanks, only for the music to swell and the broadcast to cut to a commercial.

While it is common to play off speakers who exceed the allotted time for an acceptance speech, viewers largely derided the Oscars for what they saw as a particularly abrupt cutoff. Now, the minds behind the closely watched awards show are taking note.

Yuhan, EJAE, ZHUN, Mark Sonnenblick, NHD, and 24 accept the original song award for "KPop Demon Hunters" onstage during the 98th Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 15, 2026, in Hollywood, California.

'KPop Demon Hunters' gets a 'Golden' Oscars moment with HUNTR/X performance

"One thing, as we post mortem for next year, will be to look at how we’re handling speeches," Rob Mills, the executive vice president of unscripted and alternative entertainment at Walt Disney Television, told Variety in a March 16 interview. "I don’t know what the most elegant solution is, but it's obviously something we should look really, really long and hard at."

Mills went on to acknowledge how "difficult" it can feel "cutting somebody off, and it's their one moment."

"Do we need to look at it and say, OK, designate one person to speak?" he continued. "Maybe you continue it backstage, and we have a feed on social or something like that."

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Host Conan O'Brien welcomes viewers and audience members to the Oscars show at the 98th Academy Awards in Los Angeles, March 15, 2026.

'KPop Demon Hunters' songwriters speak out after Oscars win cut off

Along with best song, "KPop Demon Hunters" won best animated film at the Oscars. It is Netflix's most watched movie of all time.

"Growing up, people made fun of me for liking K-pop and now everybody is singing along," EJAE said during a tearful speech from the stage. In the pressroom afterward, the other winners reacted, sharing the sentiments that they wished they could have said from the stage.

"I would like to thank our families," Yu Han Lee said. "This is an incredible honor."

"My family… my husband… everybody who worked on this movie… it was a real collaboration across the board. … The fans too, who have loved this movie and made it what it is… A movie is like a village, and we’re lucky to be up here right now," Mark Sonnenblick added in his own thank yous.

Contributing: Charles Trepany, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Oscars producers breaks silence on 'KPop Demon Hunters' speech debacle

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