When it comes to Oscar snubs, there are not many genres that have been cut out of the running for Best Picture than that of the big summer blockbuster. The Academy Awards have always focused on movies that are not necessarily the popular vote based on box office success, but instead the movies that they feel have a production quality, story and end product that “is cinema.” With this year’s Best Picture nominations including 2022’s two biggest movies, Avatar: The Way of Water and Top Gun: Maverick, director Steven Spielberg believes that there is one movie he feels was wrongly not put up for the award on its release that would have been nominated now; The Dark Knight. Spielberg told Deadline:
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The Dark Knight was notable for giving Heath Ledger a posthumous Oscar for his role as Joker in the movie, and while the film did land nominations in other categories, it was mostly shut out of the big awards seemingly for just existing inside that often snubbed superhero/summer blockbuster category of movies. While movies like that have always pleased audiences, and subsequently won numerous public voted award, breaking through the walls of The Academy has often been much harder to do.
“I’m really encouraged by [Avatar: The Way of Water and Top Gun: Maverick being nominated for Best Picture]. It came late for the film that should have been nominated a number of years ago, Christopher Nolan’s, The Dark Knight. That movie would have definitely garnered a Best Picture Nomination today, so having these two blockbusters solidly presented on the top 10 list is something we should all be celebrating.”
The Academy Awards Tried A Public Voted Category…and Failed.
Last year, partially to appease those who take issue with the choices of The Academy, two new categories were put out for fans to vote on via social media. With big movies like Spider-Man: No Way Home being pretty much ignored, the two categories that fans were able to vote for were Fan-Favorite Movie and Oscars Cheer Moment. While not official Oscar categories per se, even they failed to quite get things right as Zack Snyder fans took their chance to gain recognition for the director over the Justice League debacle and their constant calls for Warner Bros. Discovery to bring back the Snyderverse to the DCU.
To this end both categories were won by Snyder, with Netflix movie Army of the Dead taking the Fan Favorite Award and a scene from Zack Snyder’s Justice League taking the Cheer Moment accolade. While this pleased Snyder fans around the world, it only served to further rile up those who would not have voted for either project, and brought a whole new argument to social media about the relevancy of the Academy Awards.
When adding in the controversy over Will Smith’s slap, the 2022 ceremony is one The Academy will be hoping to make a distant memory this year. Whether the night will go without controversy, either awards related or otherwise, is something we can only wait to find out in a couple of months’ time.
