Will Bob Dylan outplay the pope? Can Elphaba Thropp vanquish Emilia Pérez? And is the Demaissance about to be completed? The 97th Academy Awards will answer all those questions and more in Los Angeles this weekend. Read on to find out how to watch an Oscars 2025 stream from anywhere with a VPN.
The culmination of the long 2025 movie awards season takes place in the familiar setting of Hollywood's Kodak Theater on Sunday, with Conan O'Brien hosting for the very first time and the likes of past winners Robert Downey Jr., Penélope Cruz, Emma Stone and Oprah Winfrey all confirmed as presenters.
It may be leading the nominations with 13, but the well-documented "Emilia Pérez" backlash has seen its campaign derailed. That leaves "Anora", "Conclave" and "The Brutalist" as favorites to duke it out for the biggest prize of the night, in one of the hardest-to-predict races in years.
You can see the major nominees at the bottom of this article, which includes some serious star power — Timothée Chalamet (playing Bob Dylan in "A Complete Unknown"), Ariana Grande ("Wicked") and Elton John (up for Best Original Song for the film "Elton John: Never Too Late") are all nominated, together with the back-with-a-bang Demi Moore for "The Substance".
With the horrendous few months L.A. has had, the Academy Awards gives the industry the chance to give praise to its stars and unsung heroes alike. Keep reading to discover where to watch Oscars 2025 live no matter where in the world you are — and potentially for free!
How to watch Oscars 2025 online for free
Outside North America, there are ways to watch the 2025 Oscars for free. Broadcasters in Australia, Ireland and the U.K. will all televise the ceremony on free-to-air channels and streaming platforms:
Australia — Channel 7 / 7plus
Ireland — RTÉ One / RTÉ Player
U.K. — ITV1 / ITVX
Traveling abroad? You can use our favorite streaming VPN to unlock your usual free streams — read on for how to do that.
How to watch the Oscars from anywhere
Away from home at the moment and blocked from watching the 2025 Oscars on your usual subscription? You can still watch the action live thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network). Our favorite is NordVPN.
Using a VPN is incredibly simple, just follow these steps:
1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we've said, NordVPN is our favorite.
2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance, if you're away from the U.K. and want to view your usual service, you'd select U.K. from the list.
3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to a service that's showing the 2025 Oscars and watch just like you would at home.
Watch Oscars 2025 online and on TV in the U.S.
The 2025 Oscars will be broadcast on ABC at 4 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 2.
There are several ways you can access ABC, the most obvious being to pull it down with one of the best TV antennas or through your cable plan.
Alternatively, ABC is among the channel line-ups of a good few of our picks for the best streaming services. That includes Sling TV, which is among the best value cable replacements and offers ABC in selected locations. Other options include Fubo, YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV and DirecTV Stream.
Hulu will also stream this year's Academy Awards. Plans start from $9.99/month, and new users can get their first 30 days absolutely free. For even better value, you can opt for the Disney Plus bundle. The package gets you access to the entire Hulu and Disney Plus catalogs from only $10.99/month.
How to watch Oscars 2025 in Canada
CTV has the rights to show the 2025 Oscars in Canada.
That means cable subscribers will be able to watch the ceremony live at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT on TV, at CTV.ca and on the CTV mobile app — all on Sunday, March 2.
Not in Canada at the moment? Signing up to NordVPN will help you access your streaming service while overseas.
How to watch Oscars 2025 in the U.K for free
The 97th Academy Awards – hosted by Conan O'Brien – goes out on ITV1, with coverage starting from 10:30 p.m. on Sunday evening ahead of the start of the ceremony at midnight.
That means it will also be available to stream for FREE online on ITVX. All you need to watch is a U.K. TV licence.
But what if you are a Brit abroad and you don't want to miss the Oscars? Don't worry — you can watch it via VPN instead.
How to watch Oscars 2025 in Australia for free
Aussies get to watch the Oscars live and for free on Channel 7. Monday's ceremony starts at 11 a.m. AEDT (immediately preceded by Red Carpet coverage) on Monday, March 3 and is repeated at 10 p.m. in the evening.
If you want to watch online, you'll be able to do so on the free-to-use 7plus , both live and on demand.
Away from Australia? You'll need to download NordVPN or another high quality alternative to stream the 97th Academy Awards as though you were back at home.
Oscars 2025 nominations
Best Picture
"Anora"
"The Brutalist"
"A Complete Unknown"
"Conclave"
"Dune: Part Two"
"Emilia Pérez"
"I'm Still Here"
"Wicked"
Best Directing
Sean Baker – "Anora"
Brady Corbet – "The Brutalist"
James Mangold – "A Complete Unknown"
Jacques Audiard – "Emilia Pérez"
Coralie Fargeat – "The Substance"
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Adrien Brody – "The Brutalist"
Timothée Chalamet – "A Complete Unknown"
Colman Domingo – "Sing Sing"
Ralph Fiennes – "Conclave"
Sebastian Stan – ""The Apprentice"
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Cynthia Erivo – "Wicked"
Karla Sofía Gascón – "Emilia Pérez"
Mikey Madison – "Anora"
Demi Moore – "The Substance"
Fernanda Torres – "I'm Still Here"
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Yura Borisov – "Anora"
Kieran Culkin – "A Real Pain"
Edward Norton – "A Complete Unknown"
Guy Pearce – "The Brutalist"
Jeremy Strong – "The Apprentice"
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Monica Barbaro – "A Complete Unknown"
Ariana Grande – "Wicked"
Felicity Jones – "The Brutalist"
Isabella Rossellini – "Conclave"
Zoe Saldaña – "Emilia Pérez"
Best Animated Feature Film
"Flow"
"Inside Out 2"
"Memoir of a Snail"
"Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl"
"The Wild Robot"
For a full list, head to our dedicated guide to the 2025 Oscar nominations
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Disclaimer
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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