Hulu subscribers expecting a seamless Oscars viewing experience were left frustrated Sunday night as the Disney-owned streaming service suffered major outages and—worse—cut off its live broadcast before the most anticipated awards of the evening were announced.
HULU ON DISNEY+ CELEBRATION – Some of the biggest stars across The Walt Disney Company celebrate the official launch of Hulu on Disney+ at an exclusive cocktail reception hosted by Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, along with special guest Bob Iger, on Friday evening in Los Angeles. (Disney/Greg Williams)
DANA WALDEN (CO-CHAIRMAN, DISNEY ENTERTAINMENT, THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY), ROBERT A. IGER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY), ALAN BERGMAN (CO-CHAIRMAN, DISNEY ENTERTAINMENT, THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY)
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The failure left viewers in the dark on Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Picture, turning what should have been a showcase for Hollywood’s biggest night into yet another example of the problems plaguing modern streaming services.
An Indictment on Streaming Services
The issues began early in the night, with thousands of users reporting pixelation, freezing, and login failures. But the real controversy came when Hulu’s stream abruptly ended right after Sean Baker accepted the award for Best Director. To make matters even more ironic, Baker’s acceptance speech included a passionate plea for audiences to support traditional cinema over streaming—just before Hulu’s broadcast dropped, seemingly proving his point.
Social media erupted in outrage, with fans voicing their frustration. “I subscribed to Hulu again just for the Oscars and then they decide to cut off the show before Best Actress and Best Picture,” one user wrote.
I subscribed to @hulu again just for the Oscars and then they decide to cut off the show before Best Actress and Best Picture pic.twitter.com/u4WaqR4tiR
— Hector Perez (@thehectorperez) March 3, 2025
Another added, “Seriously? During the Oscars? So ready to ditch Hulu.”
Hulu’s Support Scrambles
As complaints piled up, Hulu’s customer support team quickly posted on X, formerly Twitter, acknowledging the outage and assuring users they were working to resolve it.
Thanks so much for hanging in there! Our team took the necessary steps to resolve this, so you should be all set after rebooting your device. We appreciate your patience!
— Hulu Support (@hulu_support) March 3, 2025
“Having issues logging in? If so – we’re on it! Our team is actively investigating,” one post read. Later, Hulu claimed to have identified the issue, advising affected users to reboot their devices. However, for those who had already missed the biggest awards of the night, the damage was done.
Disney’s Latest Streaming Blunder
This debacle is just the latest in a series of problems for Disney’s streaming services. Hulu has long been plagued by complaints about performance issues, and this latest failure will do little to restore confidence. With streaming services increasingly pushing expensive subscription models while failing to deliver reliable service, customers are becoming less willing to tolerate these kinds of high-profile failures.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande sing at the Oscars – YouTube, Oscars
Adding to the embarrassment, Hulu’s technical failure meant viewers also missed the ceremony’s opening performance by Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.
As one viewer summed up: “F*** you Hulu logging me out and not letting me in so I missed Ariana’s performance.”
No Excuses for Disney’s Failures
This failure is made even worse when compared to Netflix’s recent issues during the Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight. That event reportedly drew more than 60 million viewers to watch the greatest fighter in history come out of retirement in a once in a lifetime event, overwhelming Netflix’s servers and causing temporary streaming issues.
But the Oscars? Seriously?
A screenshot of Mike Tyson and Jake Paul facing off before their Netflix boxing match – YouTube, MMAFightingonSBN
Interest in glitzy Hollywood award shows has been on a steady decline for years. There’s no scenario in which the audience numbers came anywhere close to that level. A company as massive as Disney has no excuse for such an embarrassing outage, especially during what was supposed to be the biggest moment of the night.
Where Was Disney’s Accountability?
It remains unclear whether the early cutoff was a technical malfunction or an intentional decision by Disney. Some users have speculated that Disney may have been limiting streaming rights in an attempt to drive audiences toward traditional TV broadcasts, while others believe it was simply a case of poor planning and failing infrastructure. Either way, the result was the same: frustrated subscribers who paid for a service that failed them at the biggest moment.
Zoe Saldana accepts the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress – YouTube, ABC News
Even the Academy Awards, which have seen declining ratings year after year, couldn’t escape the embarrassment. Once again, Hollywood’s attempt to connect with audiences was undercut—this time by the very platforms they rely on to stay relevant.
As for Disney, they might need to rethink their streaming strategy before subscribers start walking away for good.
Were you trying to watch The Oscars on Hulu? Sound off in the comments below and let us know!
