Can No Way Home win an elusive Oscar for the MCU?
It’s crazy to think that a multi-billion dollar film franchise such as the MCU has only won three Oscars and all were for 2019’s Black Panther: Best Costume Design, Best Original Score, and Best Production Design. What’s even more surprising is that the MCU, as a whole, has been nominated for the Best Visual Effects ten times, only to lose each time. However, with No Way Home setting new box office records, this might just be the year that the MCU takes home the award. According to The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, No Way Home made it to shortlist for Visual Effects and Sound. Meanwhile, No Time to Die, the highest-grossing Hollywood film of 2021 (at least before No Way Home displaces it) made it onto five different shortlists: Visual Effects, Sound, Original Score, Original Song, and Makeup and Hairstyling. What gives the MCU a good shot at winning the award for Visual Effects for 2021 is that three other MCU films made it to the shortlist as well. In addition to No Way Home, Eternals, Black Widow, as well as Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, were all included. The latest holder of the aforementioned award is Christopher Nolan’s last film with Warner Bros. Tenet. For now, the MCU will be competing against the likes of Free Guy, Dune, and Godzilla vs. Kong, for next year’s award. As for the actors, there are talks that Benedict Cumberbatch and Andrew Garfield will go head-to-head for the Best Actor award. The former is reportedly the odds-on favorite for his role in the 1920s Western movie, The Power of the Dog. Meanwhile, the latter is gaining traction for his portrayal of the late Jonathan Larson in Tick, Tick… Boom!. Ultimately, we’re just hoping that next year’s awards show proceeds as planned. This year and last year’s Oscars might have still taken place, but there were plenty of restrictions. Not to mention, several studios had to postpone their films in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that some of the delayed films have had a chance to premiere in theaters, here’s to hoping that next year’s awards show resembles a more pre-pandemic-like setup.