Oscars may ban Netflix films after Steven Spielberg’s rule change proposal

Steven Spielberg is not too keen on Netflix films being nominated for the Oscars. According to Spielberg, the latest streaming fad cuts corners as opposed to typical Hollywood blockbusters that premiere in theaters.

That said, all Netflix films could potentially be disqualified from the Oscars following a proposed rule change from Spielberg. 

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Additionally, Spielberg thinks that all films made under a streaming giant should instead be eligible to win an Emmy, the Oscar’s television counterpart.

According to IndieWire, Spielberg will propose his rule change at the next Academy Board of Governors meeting in April. Spielberg currently represents the director’s branch.

“Steven feels strongly about the difference between the streaming and theatrical situation,” an Amblin spokesperson says. “He’ll be happy if the others will join [his campaign] when that comes up [at the Academy Board of Governors meeting]. He will see what happens.”

Spielberg’s proposal comes after Netflix’s Roma was nominated for 10 awards and went home with three.

In an interview that Spielberg did last year, he said that he doesn’t think the streaming services are playing fair. Instead, he thinks large corporations will take away film makers’ work ethic and struggle when breaking into the industry.

“Fewer and fewer filmmakers are going to struggle to raise money or to go to compete at Sundance,” Spielberg says. “More of them are going to let the SVOD [subscription video on demand] businesses finance their films, maybe with the promise of a slight one week theatrical window to qualify them for awards as a movie. But, in fact, once you commit to a television format, you’re a ‘TV movie.’ I don’t believe that films that are given token qualifications, in a couple of theaters for less than a week, should qualify for the Academy Award nomination.”

This year, The Favourite and Netflix’s Roma tied for the most Oscars nominations. Plus, some of our favorites—A Star Is BornA Quiet PlaceBlack PantherBohemian RhapsodyIncredibles 2—were nominated for a handful of awards. You can check out a full list of Oscar nominees and winners here.

What do you think of Spielberg’s proposal? Sound off in the comments below.

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