Oscars: Best Picture Category to Expand to 10 Nominees in 2010
Submitted by BrianTT on June 24, 2009 - 12:12pm.
CHICAGO – In a shocking announcement today, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that there will be ten nominees for Best Picture next year instead of the usual five. The move comes a year too late for “WALL-E” and “The Dark Knight,” both of which were notoriously snubbed last year but that one has to assume would have made it in with ten. (Although this makes a nod for “Up” far more likely.)
Variety reported, “There will be 10 best picture nominees starting with the 82nd Oscar ceremony, skedded for March 7, at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood.” Sid Ganis, President of the Academy, released a press release, reprinted by the great Awards Daily:
“After more than six decades, the Academy is returning to some of its earlier roots, when a wider field competed for the top award of the year,” said Ganis. “The final outcome, of course, will be the same – one Best Picture winner – but the race to the finish line will feature 10, not just five, great movies from 2009.”
Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going allow Academy voters to recognize and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize,” commented Ganis. “I can’t wait to see what that list of ten looks like when the nominees are announced in February.”
The TEN nominees for Best Picture of 2009 will be announced on February 2nd, 2010.
 | By BRIAN TALLERICO |
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Here's what I think
The Cynic in me sees this as just opportunism for the Academy to have its snobby film cake and eat it too. Yes, DK and Wall•E definitely makes the next ten if it were last year, but do they have a snowball’s chance to win?
It just seems as if now they can put the more commercial and critical faves on the list without taking criticism that the eventual winners (or previous five nominees) are elitist or “outside the mainstream” as been the complaint in previous years. “See, we put the Dark Knight on there, so get off our backs.”
It will be truly something if a Dark Knight type movie can win. We’ll see.
Patrick McDonald is film critic and writer for this very web publication. And he is also in a band! www.myspace.com/thetelepaths
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