
Oscars mistake puts consulting firm’s reputation in jeopardy
LONDON — For 82 years, accounting and consulting firm PwC has enjoyed a reputational boon from handling the balloting process at the Academy Awards.
Now its hard-won image as a dependable partner is under threat.
The company has apologized for a colossal mistake at the 89th Academy Awards on Sunday night when actors Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty wrongly announced the top Oscar went to “La La Land,” instead of “Moonlight.”
The presenters, it turned out, had been given the wrong envelope by tabulators PwC, in this case the one awarding Emma Stone for best actress for her role in “La La Land.” The representatives from PwC, formerly known as PricewaterhouseCoopers, eventually corrected the mistake on air but it’s not clear yet how the wrong envelope ended up in the hands of the “Bonnie and Clyde” stars.