Over the past two decades, the outrageous Oscars gifts have ranged from an Antarctic cruise to a year’s worth of Audi rentals and brands fork over between $4,000 and $35,000 to be included in the annual selection. As with Super Bowl commercials, being included in the Oscars swag bag comes with a certain risk, but it’s one that brands hope will pay off with a celebrity endorsement.
It’s happened before: In 2013, Amy Adams was photographed in a gifted “Strong Is The New Skinny” shirt, and previous nominees, including Viola Davis and Mark Ruffalo, have shared photos from their free trips on Instagram. Some have even become repeat customers: Ron Howard hosted his son’s wedding at the Winvian Farm in Connecticut after visiting it through his Oscars gift bag.
This year’s haul is worth an estimated $126,000, a 10% drop from last year and nearly half off the all-time high of $225,000 in 2020 ($261,000 in today’s dollars). Then again, the bag is still worth more than 300 times the value of Oscar himself—the 24-karat gold-plated statuette only costs about $400 to make.
The 2023 Oscars goodies range from plastic surgery to a bottle of coconut water, and all will be delivered to the homes of A-listers such as Austin Butler, Cate Blanchett, Michelle Yeoh and Steven Spielberg this week. Though the concept of a “gift bag” has long been a misnomer: There are so many presents each year that they require multiple suitcases to transport them all.
The choice of packing, however, is apt: Often, the most expensive presents are trips to far-flung destinations—the perfect opportunity for a celebrity to be spotted with a gifted carry-on. This year’s selection includes a $40,000 getaway to a 10-acre Canadian estate called The Lifestyle and a three-night stay in a restored Italian lighthouse, valued at $9,000.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabellord/2023/03/07/inside-the-126000-oscars-gift-bags-from-an-italian-getaway-to-home-renovation-to-plastic-surgery/?sh=1ff5349c389d
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