Oscar 2022: Fans Can Vote For Their Favorite Film In A New Category

A week ago, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released the nominees for the 94th Annual Academy Awards. The upcoming ceremony will continue the Oscarstradition of rewarding artistic and technical excellence in the film industry.

Fans are highly anticipating some of their favorite films sweeping home some accolades. With many contenders vying for the various categories, the battle ahead would only be won by the best of the best.

It is the norm for the Academy members to vote for the winners of each coveted category. However, this year, fans will have a taste of what it feels like to be the deciding factor as the showrunners have added a part to bestow them with voting powers. Read on for more details.

Alongside releasing the nominees for this year's edition of the Academy Awards, the showrunners also announced to fans the inclusion of a new category dubbed "Fan Favorite Movie Of The Year." This allows them to choose their best film from the plethora of movies released in a calendar year.

Oscars outlined that anyone may vote for their favorite 2021 up until Thursday, March 3, using the #OscarsFanFavorite hashtag on Twitter. As an added incentive to vote, the Academy will choose three persons who cast their ballots on Twitter to travel on an all-expenses-paid trip to the 2023 Oscars in Los Angeles with their desired guest.

Fans can also use the hashtag #OscarsCheerMoment to vote for a memorable movie moment from last year's collections. At the ceremony, the best scene gets broadcasted for viewers. Additionally, the fan-favorite film of the year will be announced alongside the other categories already voted for by the Academy members.

According to the announcement issued on Twitter, fans can vote up to 20 times per day, which gives them ample opportunity to push for their choices. However, a small caveat was attached to the selection process, which required fans to pick from a list of eligible movies on the Oscar website.

Fans reacted to the announcement by sharing their opinions in the comment section. For the most part, many loved the idea but were unhappy that the voting process got restricted to those based in the United States.

One fan said, "I like movies. I'd like to vote. I can't because I'm not in theUS. @TheAcademy, Open this up to the world!! I'm insulted that I can't vote for the fan-favorite award. It was a GREAT idea. Now let us vote!"

The Oscars announced intentions to create a new category for exceptional accomplishment in the film industry in August 2018. However, the awards show opted not to follow through on the decision as it was deemed controversial at the time.

Now that the previous view has changed, Meryl Johnson, VP of digital marketing at the Academy, has informed the public of their new partnership with Twitter to promote the new category and the award ceremony.

"We're thrilled to partner with Twitter to help build an engaged and excited digital audience leading up to this year's ceremony," she told The Hollywood Reporter. "Through these activations, social media users around the world now have more opportunities to engage with the show in real-time, find a community, and be a part of the experience in ways they've never been able to before."

While the prestigious award ceremony is known to reward individuals in the film industry, sometimes stars from the music industry get some honors for their work. For instance, a Billie Eilish song garnered acclaim to land a nomination spot in this year's edition.

The artiste expressed her happiness, delivering a heart-warming statement for her fans.

"Words cannot describe how honored and excited we are to have been nominated for an Academy Award for our song "No Time To Die," she said as she referenced her song from the blockbuster.

"To be recognized today among these other incredible nominees is something we most certainly do not take for granted. Thank you to the Academy, from the bottom of our hearts."