The Oscars Add A “Popular Film” Award

This is the first time the academy has added a new category since 2001.

Preparations Continue for this years 90th Oscars on February 28, 2018 in Hollywood, California.  (Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Preparations Continue for this years 90th Oscars on February 28, 2018 in Hollywood, California. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group that puts on the Oscars, has announced a new category: Achievement in “popular film.”

This is the first time a new category has been introduced since 2001, when the academy added best animated feature. It appears that it is supposed to honor crowd-pleasing box office hits that sometimes get left out out of awards considerations, like superhero movies.

People already do not seem happy about the change:

The academy also announced they are shortening the telecast to three hours in order to deliver “a more accessible Oscars for our viewers worldwide.” Last year’s Oscars, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, was almost four hours long.

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