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Dwayne Johnson Addresses DCU Humiliation at Oscars 2023


Superhero outings rarely get a nod at major award shows such as the Academy. Some people still believe that superhero stories are not cinema, despite always dominating the box office. The 2023 Oscars recently concluded, and superhero fans are dismayed that Angela Bassett did not take home the award for best supporting actress despite her powerful performance as Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Other than this, the DC movies also didn’t get any acknowledgment, and DCU star Dwayne Johnson weighed in on the lack of recognition.

Following the epic failure and the unnecessary hate that was thrown towards the DCU movie Black Adam and the axing of Henry Cavill from the role of Superman, Johnson broke his silence over the matter while speaking with Variety on the red carpet of 2023’s Oscars. “You know, all that I could do and that we could do when we were making ‘Black Adam’ was to put our best foot forward, surround ourselves with the best people, and then also deliver the best movie we could. Our audience score was in the 90s. Critics took a couple of shots. That’s just the business of it, though.” he reasoned.

Given the negative reactions that Black Adam received upon its release, it’s only fair that it didn’t get any Oscar nominations; however, fans also questioned why Matt Reeves’ movie The Batman, which many believe is one of the best movies of 2022, was snubbed at the awarding. Despite receiving three nominations this year, competing for Best Sound, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Visual Effects, it came home empty-handed.

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Roger Deakins, who has won two Oscars for best cinematography, told Deadline that Batman’s director of photography, Greig Fraser, should’ve been recognized. “The best cinematography hasn’t been nominated. It’s The Batman. That’s the best work in my view. The reason it wasn’t is pure and simple: snobbery. There’s this unfair tendency to avoid the Marvel universe and the other popular universes.”

Aside from this, fans are also furious about the fact that Kevin Conroy was snubbed in the ‘In Memoriam" section. Conroy, who died in November 2022 and was widely known for being the voice of Batman for three decades across almost three dozen television shows, movies, and video games. Some emphasized that Batman: Mask of the Phantasm got a theatrical release, so fans took to social media to express their disappointment.

Other than the real avid moviegoers, superhero fans are usually the reason cinemas get occupied now and then, so it’s probably right that experts in the industry try to understand where they're coming from and their desire to get recognition for their favorite superhero movies and actors.


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