‘Black Panther’ takes another big step toward a possible Oscar nomination for Best PIcture, as it becomes the first superhero film ensemble in history to get a SAG nomination.
History was made this morning when the Screen Actors Guild nominated Marvel Studios’ superhero blockbuster Black Panther for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. This is the first time SAG has nominated a superhero movie for ensemble, equivalent to Best Picture. The Producers Guild of America announces their nominations in January, and their 10-film list of nominees for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Picture will likely include Black Panther. PGA has never had an aversion to nominating superhero movies — last year they nominated Wonder Woman, and in past years they nominated Deadpool, The Dark Knight, and The Incredibles. So with their history of nominating great films that are beloved by audiences and achieve enormous box office success, Black Panther should be a shoo-in for a PGA nomination. Which means Black Panther is all but certain to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
Chadwick Boseman stars as Black Panther, leading Wakanda and other superheroes into battle in Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War” Source: Marvel Studios
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences invites members of the various film industry guilds to join its organization every year, and there are now about 6,687 members of the Academy. The SAG and PGA have the biggest voting blocks at the Academy, and movies that win large blocks of support from those two groups usually tend to win at the Oscars.
The way voting works, first all Academy members fill out a ballot for their personal nominees for Best Picture. These ballots use a preferential voting system, meaning you list your top choice for Best Picture in spot #1, your second choice in spot #2, and so on. Each spot on the ballot has a number of points assigned to it, and the Academy adds up how many total points every film gets. Films that earn a certain number of votes or more get nominated for Best Picture. The number needed to receive a nomination is based on the total number of ballots cast for Best Picture, divided by number of potential nominees for Best Picture plus one, and rounding up the final number.
