Oscars to celebrate big-screen heroes

photo In this Feb. 25, 2012 file photo, a Oscar statue is seen on the red carpet before the 84th Academy Awards in Los Angeles. The producers of the 86th annual Academy Awards say this year's ceremony will honor big-screen, real-life heroes, superheroes, popular heroes and animated heroes, both past and present, as well as the filmmakers who bring them to life. Craig Zadan and Neil Meron said Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2014, that they wanted to unify the March 2 show with an entertaining and emotional theme. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)

LOS ANGELES - It's a bird. It's a plane. It's the Oscars?

The producers of the 86th annual Academy Awards say this year's ceremony will honor big-screen, real-life heroes, superheroes, popular heroes and animated heroes - both past and present - as well as the filmmakers who bring them to life.

Oscar producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron said Tuesday that they want to unify the March 2 show with an entertaining and emotional theme. They also teased that the Dolby Theatre ceremony will feature comedy from host Ellen DeGeneres, as well as a few musical surprises.

The nominations for this year's Oscars will be announced Thursday morning.

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