Oscar swag: Stars get these (unofficial) gifts
Congratulations, Margot Robbie and Timothée Chalamet. Not only are you nominated for Academy Awards, but you are being gifted a bunch of random trips and products.
Thus is the Oscar tradition. Actually, it’s not an Academy-sanctioned activity at all— the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences filed and resolved a lawsuit against company Distinctive Assets over the extravagant gift bags they annually give to nominees. The company now calls their unofficial swag bags the “Everyone Wins” gift, instead of using Oscars in the branding.
For 16 years, the L.A. marketing company Distinctive Assets has delivered the directing and acting Oscar nominees a collection of freebies, which goes to each person’s home or hotel the week leading up to the show.
What’s in the bag that goes out to 26 stars and directors this year? A bounty of gifts that are worth at least $100,000. (Distinctive Assets won’t get more specific about the value of their giveaways, but they say that a number of brands pay to be a part of the bag. And, yes, stars are taxed for the physical gifts.) Here are the “Everyone Wins” goodies and trips that range from mildly bizarre to truly extravagant:
Think Meryl Streep and Denzel Washington will appreciate the presents?
