The 91st Academy Awards drew an average 29.6 million viewers Sunday, a 12 percent increase over last year's record low.

However, this year's broadcast was still the second smallest audience ever for an Academy Awards show, second to last year's telecast, Variety reported.

CNN reported Monday that the Oscars remains one of the most watched broadcasts of the year despite some controversy surrounding this year's event.

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The annual awards ceremony was without a host for the first time in 30 years after Kevin Hart stepped down following the resurfacing of his anti-gay tweets.

There was also controversy related to proposals to address the low ratings from 2018.

The Academy floated, then scrapped, a plan for a new best popular film category.

The show also planned to give out some awards during commercial breaks, but also reversed on that decision following backlash.

The event lasted roughly 3 hours and 20 minutes compared to the nearly four-hour run-time last year.