It was in 1929 that the first Academy Awards were given out. Categories such as “Best Picture, “Best Director”, “Best Actor” and “Best Actress” were present from the very beginning and alongside the way many joined them such as “Best International Feature Film” and “Best Documentary Feature”. That last one that was added was “Best Animated Feature Film” in 2001. However, we feel that there are still a few categories being left out.
Academy Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actor
That the film industry is packed with established male talent is undeniably true. Previous Academy Award winners are Gary Oldman (Leading Role in 2018), Rami Malek (Leading Role in 2019), Sam Rockwell (Supporting Role in 2018) and Mahershala Ali (Supporting Role in 2019). They already had a long list of credentials behind their names and so sadly the category doesn’t really allow upcoming talent to be nominated.
Therefore we would love to integrate a category that only focusses on actors who make their full-length film debut. It’s hard for upcoming talent to breakthrough in the film world. An Oscar nomination or win in the “Academy Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actor” wouldn’t only give them the chance to stand in the spotlight but it would probably also be the start of a prosperous career. Actors for this category would be Zack Gottsagen who puts on an incredible performance in The Peanut Butter Falcon and Kris Hitchen for his stunning acting in Sorry We Missed You
Academy Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor or Actress
Actors and actresses like DiCaprio, Matthew McConaughey, Julia Roberts, and Judi Dench are gracing our screens for many years now. Being on-screen was probably a desire they had from a very young ago. Just like them, many young people have the dream to pursue a job in the film industry but these days it can be very difficult to shine as a young actor or actress.
To assure that there will always be upcoming talent we would like to announce the “Academy Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor or Actress”. It would have given actors and actresses such as Jacob Tremblay (for Room) or Brooklynn Prince (for The Florida Project) more chances of being nominated for an Oscar. If it would be integrated now, actors such as Roman Griffin Davis and Archie Yates (both for JoJo Rabbit) and actresses like Shahadi Wright Joseph (for US) would be potential nominees in this category.
Academy Award for Best Directional Debut
Whether it’s esteemed actors who take place behind the camera for the first time or unknown directors who made a spectacular film debut, they all deserve attention for their directional debut. Pretty sure that releasing a debut can be immensely nervewracking and crucial for a career as a director. Therefore, it would be great if the “Academy Award for Best Directional Debut” would become part of the ceremony. If the Academy introduces this category next year, the names of Mati Diop (Atlantics), Ladj Ly (Les Misérables), Olivia Wilde (Booksmart) and Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz (both for The Peanut Butter Falcon) could be on the shortlist.
Academy Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actress
If there’s an “Academy Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actor” category then we also should have the “Academy Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actress” one. By integrating this category, upcoming and extremely skilful female talent actresses would be able to keep their acting dream alive and bring more diversity to the screen. Names like Awkwafina (The Farewell), Debbie Honeywood (Sorry We Missed You) and Jessie Buckley (Wild Rose) would be the nominees.
Academy Award for Best Stunt
It was during the MTV Movie & TV Awards this year that Brie Larson brought her Captain Marvel stunt doubles, Renae Moneymaker and Joanna Bennett, on-stage when she received that award for Best Stunt. Stunt doubles have an immensely important role in films but they’re often forgotten when it comes to award nominations. As the fifth new category, we would like to introduce the “Academy Award for Best Stunt”. With that, we hope that stunt doubles get the attention and awards they deserve for their (dangerous) hard, physically demanding and passionate work. Moneymaker and Bennett would be nominated for this alongside every stunt double that makes the action look amazing on screen. It might be the biggest category but at the same time, it’s also a very important one.
Do you agree with these five potential new Academy Awards categories? Let us know in the comments.
Also Read: For Your Consideration: Sci-Fi, Comedy & Oscar Snubs
