There will be 323 feature films eligible for the upcoming Academy Awards, the AMPAS announced on Monday, though a whopping 36% of them – 116 feature films – are not eligible for consideration in the Best Picture category.
The reasoning behind the disqualifications vary. In some cases, the filmmakers did not attempt to qualify, but many of the disqualifications were due to the new eligibility rules that require Best Picture candidates to meet diversity and inclusion benchmarks. This is the second year that Representation and Inclusion Standards (RAISE) have been enforced.
It should be noted that of the disqualified films, we’re not looking at any serious contenders for Best Picture. Among the titles excluded, there’s “Madame Web,” “Harold and the Purple Crayon” and “Sonic 3.” Then again, you also have respectable films disqualified, like Andrea Arnold’s “Bird,” Anna Kendrick’s “Woman of the Hour,” Magnus Von Horns’ “The Girl With the Needle,” Matthew Rankin’s “Universal Language,” and Michael Keaton’s “Knox Goes Away.”