DISNEY Pushes Expected OSCAR Nominations for “AVENGERS: ENDGAME” in 2020

Superhero movies have never been one for being seriously considered in the premier categories of many film awards; but Marvel Studios, and by extension their parent company Disney, are looking at pushing the crowning moment of the MCU movie franchise thus far in as many categories as possible for next year’s Academy Awards. It was originally perceived as a move of supreme arrogance in 2018 when Disney-Marvel proposed a score of Oscar nominations for “Black Panther,” and while they only succeeded in netting (and winning) some technical categories, the film also got a surprise nomination spot for Best Picture. What more, then, for “Avengers: Endgame”?

IGN has it that the fourth “Avengers” MCU film, a climax of the franchise’s “Phase 3” story arc and capstone of over 10 years of an integrated superhero universe, has been featured on Disney’s “For Your Consideration” page of their Studio Awards website. On this page the House of Mouse makes its case for major movie award-giving bodies like the Academy (AMPAS) and Golden Globes for any of their blockbusters that deserve to win some of the most meaningful figurines and trophies of the motion picture industry. And “Avengers: Endgame” is getting the expected push.

This time however, Disney has decided to dial down their expectations. While the expected major Academy Award categories such as Best Picture, Best Director and Best Cinematography are on, there are no acting categories being put into consideration for “Endgame” unlike with “Black Panther.” Perhaps Disney-Marvel has decided that they will only hold to Oscar battles they can truly fight in, despite a persisting rumor that “Iron Man” star and MCU pillar Robert Downey Jr. has earned enough clout to go for an acting nomination. All in all, “Avengers: Endgame” has 13 Academy Award categories Disney is angling to win:

1. Best Picture
2. Best Director (Joe and Anthony Russo)
3. Best Adapted Screenplay
4. Best Cinematography (Trent Opaloch)
5. Best Film Editing
6. Best Production Design
7. Best Costume Design
8. Best Makeup and Hairstyling
9. Best Sound Mixing
10. Best Sound Editing
11. Best Visual Effects
12. Best Original Score (Alan Silvestri)

It is a more manageable list compared to the most-category blitz pulled by Disney for “Black Panther,” though back then that film secured seven Oscar nominations and won three categories (all for technical aspects). And yes, one of the categories nominated was for Best Picture, despite its low chances against the competition. The next Academy Awards (the 92^nd) will be held on February of next year and aired on ABC, so whether “Avengers: Endgame” succeeds in Disney-Marvel’s expectations will be made known then.

Image courtesy of Metro UK