10 Reasons Black Panther Shouldn't Win Best Picture
A great movie, but Oscar worthy?
We're now almost two months removed from the release of Black Panther, and with near-universal critical acclaim and an insane box office haul of well over $1.2 billion, fans have already begun passionately campaigning for the phenomenon to score big at next year's Academy Awards.
It will certainly be tough for Oscar voters to ignore a film that's such a pervasive pop-culture landmark, and while it will most definitely score a handful of crafts nominations in the very least, the film's most effusive cheerleaders insist that it needs to scoop the most prized gold statue itself: Best Picture.
It goes without saying that the Academy is historically prejudiced against blockbuster films and the superhero genre in particular, but on its own terms, should Black Panther really end up winning the Big One?
Even with the Academy slowly becoming more diverse and desperate to prove itself accepting of more mainstream movies in light of declining ratings, the prospect of Marvel Studios' latest tentpole scooping Best Picture is, to be honest, a bit laughable.
Is Black Panther a great movie? Absolutely: it's one of the MCU's best and a breath of fresh air, but to festoon it with year-end awards would be to ignore the many issues which prevent it from being a legitimate Best Picture contender.
While the film may rightfully scoop awards for costume and production design among others, there are myriad reasons why Black Panther shouldn't be a serious Best Picture possibility...