For its final-days Oscars countdown coverage, the Hollywood Reporter scored the first official interview given by new Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Dawn Hudson. Reporter Stephen Galloway spoke with her on Sunday February 19 together with the organization’s COO Ric Robertson.

When asked what has surprised her most about the job, Hudson offered this answer:

“The scrutiny. I had what I thought was a casual meeting [during] my first couple of days, and 20 minutes after they left the LA Times called me. Then I thought, “OK, no meeting is off the record.” The Academy matters to people around the world. It’s such a global mark. And so the flap of the butterfly wing really does create [a worldwide effect].

There’s lots more good stuff in the interview, including some background details about the Brett Ratner brouhaha and a surprising, shared pick by Hudson and Robertson for favorite personal film.

Meanwhile, in his latest “Nikki Leaks” blog post, Richard Rushfield connects this THR exclusive to yesterday’s (since disputed) Deadline.com report that Sacha Baron Cohen has been banned from attending the Oscars. He suggests that the Deadline item may have been Nikki Finke‘s angry reaction to AMPAS giving the Hudson interview to a competitor.

[Photo credit: Art Streiber/THR]