Academy Awards 2026 garnered media attention for a variety of reasons, both positive and negative. Among them, the In-Memoriam section was one of the contentious issues that had everyone discussing. The creators of the event faced severe criticism for leaving out a number of well-known movie stars from around the globe, including Dharmendra. Broadcast executive Rob Mills, who is in charge of the telecast, responded to the mounting criticism by defending the segment.

Rob Mills, Walt Disney Television's EVP of unscripted and alternative entertainment, defended the choice to leave out a few names from the In-Memoriam part of the most recent Oscars 2026 broadcast in an interview with Variety. 

He said, "I think it’s the hardest thing they possibly do. It always is hard when they are sort of villainised for this. Yes, there’s always people who are left out. Unfortunately, we’re losing more and more people, and especially, we’re losing legendary people every year, so it is probably the hardest needle to thread. I do think what they did last night might have been the best In Memoriam in the history of the Oscars."

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Academy Awards broadcast executive went on to say that it's always really difficult to conceptualise the segment. Additionally, he described how the entire segment was planned.

"And then obviously the tragedy with Rob and Michelle Reiner was just awful. When that happened, I think that’s when they started to really think about, 'Okay, how is this going to take shape? What are we going to do?'... It’s a big task that I think (Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan) met the moment beautifully," he added. 

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Academy Awards In-Memoriam Section

Several late celebrities, including Dharmendra, were left out of the extended In Memoriam part during the live broadcast of the 98th Academy Awards, which took place in Los Angeles on Sunday night. This left spectators unsatisfied and generated criticism.

Among the numerous Hollywood giants who passed away, Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Reiner, were honoured in the ceremony's In Memoriam section. Diane Keaton, Robert Redford, and Robert Duvall were among the other forgotten luminaries that were highlighted during the evening.