The Oscars Make Way More Sense Now — People Were Voting Without Actually Seeing The Movies
Beginning this year, Academy members will not be able to vote in a category unless they have seen each of the nominated films.
Movie fans have passionate opinions and there aren’t many things everyone will agree on — except hating on the Academy Awards. While the annual awards show is fun to check out, and we all root for the people behind our favorite films to win and get the recognition they deserve, there is a general consensus that the winners are somewhat arbitrary. The best film does not always — or even usually — win.
A perfect example of this phenomena is the most recent awards where Emilia Pérez received 13 nominations despite overwhelmingly negative reviews. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, who votes for nominees and winners, is also notorious for snubbing the horror genre, even when it leads to epic fumbles like the lack of a Best Actress nomination for Isabelle Adjani in Possession (1981) or Toni Collette for Hereditary (2018).
How do Oscar nominations work? Members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences vote to determine Academy Award nominees and winners through a secret online ballot. Members vote to nominate candidates in their respective fields (e.g., actors vote for acting awards) and everyone votes to nominate films for Best Picture. All Academy members vote for the winners in every category among the nominated candidates.
One reason the nominees and winners can be so out of sync with audience opinions is that films “campaign” to win the awards. For instance, studios will host fancy private screenings or create a pr narrative meant to persuade Academy members to vote for the film. 2024 Best Picture winner Anora spent $18 million on its Oscar campaign. This is three times what was spent on actually making the movie as its budget was just $6 million.
Another reason for the sometimes bizarre choices for Academy Award winners has just been brought to light by a new rule the Academy is instituting. Beginning this year, Academy members will not be able to vote in a category unless they have seen each of the nominated films. This means that previously, members would vote for their favorite film without even watching the competition.
The Academy will verify compliance based on the honor system. They can see who views a film through the Academy’s own screening system, but if a member goes to the theater or catches a film at a festival, they simply submit a form saying where they viewed it. The new rule also does not solve the problem of ensuring the best candidates are nominated in the first place, as there are simply too many films released each year (569 in 2024) for most people to watch.
Will the Academy’s new rule result in more nominees and winners that more movie fans can get behind for the 98th annual awards next year? We’ll have to wait and see. Nominations for 2025 films will be announced on January 22, 2026.
