5 New Categories the Oscars Should Have Added

Pretty Soon Everyone Will Be Winning Big at the Oscars…

The Oscars have added a new category and starting in 2020 there will be an award for “Outstanding Popular Film.” To be honest I have no idea how they’re going to figure out how to do that award. Is it by box office and quality? Does this mean the other films weren’t popular? Is this a way to limit diversity in Best Picture? It’s no secret that I don’t always see eye to eye with the Academy, but this new addition to the Oscars has me more than a little confused. I guess we’ll have to wait to see how this new category works, but I think there were a couple of other categories I would have liked to have seen first. There are a lot of people who are overlooked in the film industry, which is why I think these 5 categories should have been created first.

Voice Acting

There are some incredible actors who have long been overlooked just because they never show their face on a screen. There are also mainstream actors who have given the performance of a lifetime in a sound booth. That’s why I think it’s high time that the Oscars should give animated movies a bit more attention. Just think Alan Tudyk could have won an award for Heihei in Moana! John Cena could have gotten props for Ferdinand! Bryan Cranston could be up for his performance Isle of Dogs! Plus there are all those voice actors whose names you never took the time to learn. Voice acting can make or break movies, so I think the actors who make some of our favorite animated films deserve a shout out.

Fight Choreography/Stunts

Sure, there are the Taurus Awards, but I think it’s high time that the people who literally risk their lives for our entertainment should be eligible to join A-list actors on the red carpet. Hell, even a few A-Listers could find himself up for an award if they do their own stunts (Ie: Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible- Fallout). Think about it, John Wick wouldn’t have been half as cool without the people putting together those awesome gunfights and Michael Bay would be out of a job without explosions. Plus, there are plenty of foreign films that deserve an award for their wire-fu. This Oscars category would help reach out to more mainstream movie fans and honor “outstanding popular films.”

Best Trailer

I’m one of those weirdos who loves watching trailers before movies start. A good trailer can make a bad movie look amazing and a bad trailer can tank a good film. There’s an art to snagging someone’s attention and keeping it in just a few minutes. Hell, I’ve seen trailers that were I loved more than the movies they were for. I think the Oscars should give the editors who meticulously put together these awesome trailers should definitely get credit for their work. Sure, these might not be actual films, but you can keep pretty much all the other requirements to be eligible for the Oscars, played during the previous year in theaters (that might be a bit of a simplification). Plus, everyone could sit through the entries in this category.

Best Blockbuster

Now, this could be eerily similar to the new “Outstanding Popular Film,” but hear me out. Obviously box office reflect popularity since people tend to see movies they like multiple times in theaters. So, you could take, say, the 10 highest grossing films of the year and then give an award to the best one of them all. It might take the fun out of guessing the nominations, but this would be a great way for the Oscars to honor popular films. Now, this might be exactly what they’re planning to do, but this name would probably go over a bit better with fans. Especially since I’ve seen so many angry tweets since the category was announced. Then again, everyone is pretty much always angry at The Academy anyways.

Best New Comer/ Breakout Performance

This one might be a bit of a stretch, but I think those newcomers to the big screen deserve a shout out. I think the stipulation should be that they haven’t been in a theatrically released feature film. While actors and actresses probably fit best in this category, the Oscars could also consider adding directors to this category as well. This would eliminate the chance of The Academy just handing out awards to people just because they might be popular in the industry. Boots Riley could get a nomination for Sorry to Bother You or Rafael Casal could get one for Blindspotting. There have been some incredible first-time performances both on and behind the camera over the years and those newcomers deserve a chance to get the spotlight too.

Those are just a couple of ideas for new Oscars categories. However, I’m sure there are a ton of other people who toil in the darkness of tinsel town without ever getting to see the limelight. So, be sure to comment below what categories you’d like to see The Academy add in the near future.