Movie fans, brace yourself. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have announced that fans will be able to vote for their favourite film that was released in 2021. The movie that receives the highest number of votes will be recognized during the Oscars.
Apart from this, Twitter and social media users will be able to cast their vote for what they feel is the most cheer-worthy movie moment ever. The winning moment is expected to be shown during the award ceremony.
The 94th Oscars are scheduled to be held on Sunday, March 27, 2022 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, LA, California. Award shows, including the Oscars, have struggled with getting viewership over the last few years. The 2021 Oscars was watched by the lowest number of audiences ever. Viewership for the annual Oscars telecast plunged to a new low, with 10.4 million people watching to find out which film took home the best picture prize, according to Nielsen data. That’s a nearly 56% drop from the 23.6 million viewers in the previous year.
Given the dropping levels of interest over the years, it seems the Academy is using social media to connect with fans and get them interested in the final ceremony. The idea is to include more popular movies so as to ensure interest amongst the audiences. Fans can vote either by submitting their pick at OSCARSFANFAVORITE.COM or tweeting the picks with #OscarsFanFavorite, #SweepStakes and #OscarsCheerMoment. Fans can vote up to 20 times per day until 03rd March and stand a chance to win a trip to the 95th Oscars in 2023.
However, there is a catch. The voting is open only to people living in the United States. The voting page is not available for fans living in other regions of the World. This has disappointed global fans outside of the US.
The Academy had attempted to introduce a ‘Popular’ movie category in 2019 but scrapped the same once they received backlash from fans and a few members of the Academy. This basically clears the way for a popular movie like ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ to receive some appreciation, although not via an award, at the Oscars. A lot of fans were upset that the year’s biggest movie at the box offices was snubbed.
This attempt by the Academy to stay relevant among a wider audience has given viewers in the United States a medium to voice their opinion of their favourite movie during 2021. Hopefully this engagement increases the potential viewers for the main awards ceremony and is extended to fans globally next year.