LOS ANGELES — It’s almost time to give the academy awards a big hand

OK, maybe we should rephrase that.

one year later Will Smith took the stage at the Dolby Theater and slapped Chris Rock in the face, the oscars will meet again on Sunday for a ceremony that will try to pass one of the most infamous moments in Academy Awards history.

Broadcast from Dolby in Los Angeles begins at 8 pm EDT on ABC. The broadcast can be streamed with a subscription to Hulu Live TV, YouTubeTV, AT&T TV, and Fubo TV. You can also stream the show on ABC.com and on the ABC app by authenticating your provider.

Jimmy Kimmel, the show’s first solo emcee in five years, is hosting for the third time. The late-night comedian has promised to make some jokes about The Slap; it would be «ridiculous» not to, he said.

Bill Kramer, chief executive of the film academy, said it was important, given what happened last year, to have «a presenter who can really pivot and handle those moments.»

«No one was beaten when I hosted the show,» Kimmel wryly bragged Thursday on «Good Morning America.» «Everyone was good at my Oscars.»

Kimmel will preside over a ceremony that could see big wins for t for Best Favorite Movie, «Everything Everywhere All at Once.» The independent action comedy hit from Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert comes in with 11 top nominationsincluding nods to michelle yeoh and Ke Huy Quan.

The producers are revamping some aspects of the Oscars. The carpet is champagne color, not red. Streaming is planned to be more interactive than ever.

But the academy, still trying to find its footing after several years of pandemic and ratings woes, is also hoping for a smoother ride than last year. A crisis management team has been created to help better respond to surprises. The academy has called out its response to Smith’s actions last year. «inappropriate.» Neither Rock, who recently made his strongest statement about the incident in a live special, nor Smith, who has been banned by the academy for 10 years, will attend.

Instead, the Academy Awards will try to recapture some of its former luster. One thing works in his favor: the field of best films this year is packed with blockbusters. Viewership ratings tend to increase when the nominees are more popular, which is certainly the case with «Top Gun: Maverick,» «Avatar: The Way of Water,» and to a lesser extent, «Elvis» and «Everything Everywhere All at Once.» .

But the last-minute contender who may do well in the technical categories, where the biggest movies often reign, is Netflix’s top nominee this year: the German World War I epic «All Quiet on the Western Front.» It has nine awards, tied for second with the Irish black comedy «The Banshees of Inisherin.» Netflix’s «Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio» too looks like a shoo-in for the best animated film.

The awards will also feature some stellar wattage in musical performances. Refresh his performance in the Super Bowl, Rihanna will perform her Oscar-nominated song «Lift Me Up» from «Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.» «This Is Life,» from «Everything Everywhere All at Once,» will be sung by David Byrne and supporting actress nominee Stephanie Hsu with the band Son Lux. Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava will perform “Naatu Naatu” from the Indian action epic “RRR”. Lenny Kravitz will perform during the In Memoriam tribute. (Lady Gaga, currently in production on a film, will not perform her nominated song «Hold My Hand» from «Top Gun: Maverick.»)

Last year, Apple TV’s “CODA” became the first streaming movie to win best picture. But this year, nine of the 10 best picture nominees were theatrical releases. After the movie business collapsed during the pandemic, movie theater attendance rebounded to around 67% of pre-pandemic levels. But it was an up-and-down year, filled with greatest hits and anxiety-inducing lulls in theaters.

At the same time, the streaming rush encountered new setbacks as studios questioned long-term profitability and reassessed their release strategies. This year, ticket sales have been strong thanks to releases like “Creed III” and «Cocaine Bear». But storm clouds remain on the horizon. The Writers Guild and major studios are set to begin contract negotiations on March 20, a looming battle that has much of the industry bracing for the possibility of a film and television work stoppage.

The Oscars, meanwhile, are trying to re-establish their position as the premier awards show. Last year’s broadcast drew 16.6 million viewers, an increase of 58% over the scaled-down 2021 edition, watched by an all-time low of 10.5 million.

Typically, the awards for Best Actor and Best Actress are presented by the previous year’s acting winners. But that will not be the case this time. Who will replace Smith in the best actress presentation is just one of the questions before the ceremony.