It's Hard Out There for an Oscar-Nominated Songwriting Pimp

While the cutting-edge, youth-friendly innovations being cooked up at the Academy's OscarLabs are being kept under tight wraps, one major change has leaked to Deadline, and it's one that will rock Beyoncé's foundation garments: The Best Song performance has been eliminated from the festivities, to make room for the 10 Best Picture nominees; instead, the songs will play under clips of the films they're from. (Pictured, the members of Oscar-winning Three Six Mafia flash a grill of disappointment.) This decision comes in a year boasting a particularly uninspired crop, including "Loin de Paname" from the obscure Paris 36, three Randy Newman tunes from The Princess and the Frog, Marion Cotillard's Nine song called "Take it All" and "The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)" from photobombing outlaw, Ryan Bingham.

Many of the most egregious snubs in the category could have immeasurably enhanced the show -- Karen O. with a crowd of kids in furry costumes singing a rumpus-like "All Is Love," or Ed Helms at a grand piano singing "Stu's Song," or just about anyone showing up from the New Moon soundtrack -- but beyond the charming Bingham, who probably needed this performance more than anyone (and missed his Golden Globes acceptance moment because he was chatting up a friend at the bar), this year's class was a pass.