Taylor Swift will take the stage at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures' sixth annual gala on Oct. 17, closing out a night dedicated to three of this year's honorees: Charlize Theron, Colman Domingo, and filmmaker/composer John Carpenter. The Academy Museum operates under the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organization behind the Oscars.
Academy Museum Director Amy Homma announced the news in a statement, saying, "Taylor is an extraordinary talent whose work resonates around the world. We are thrilled to welcome her to this year's gala and look forward to her performance to close a wonderful evening of honoring three extraordinary filmmakers and supporting the Academy Museum's mission to celebrate and preserve cinema."
The timing of Swift's appearance lines up with the start of this year's Oscars voting season. Swift is eligible for Best Original Song for "I Knew It, I Knew You," her contribution to Toy Story 5. Preliminary voting begins in early December, with shortlists for categories typically including Best Original Song expected on Dec. 15. Final nominations will be announced Jan. 21, 2027.
Despite a long history of writing for film, Swift has never landed an Oscar nomination. Her past movie songs include "Carolina" for Where the Crawdads Sing, "Beautiful Ghosts" for the film adaptation of Cats, "I Don't Wanna Live Forever" from Fifty Shades Darker, and "Only the Young" from her own documentary Miss Americana. Her short film "All Too Well" had also been eligible for a Best Live Action Short Film nomination but did not make the cut.
Swift, a well-known film enthusiast, is reportedly developing a feature-length directorial debut. The project was first announced in 2022, though no timeline has been given for when it might begin production or reach release.
Photo: Likie212, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
