The BAFTA longlists are out and it looks like they don’t have any room for Avatar 2.
While Avatar: The Way of Water has managed to dominate cinemas in more than 45 countries by holding the top position at the box office, it looks like the film’s luck ends with profitable numbers as the blockbuster sequel fails to make it to the BAFTA longlists. And fans are outraged at what seems to be a preposterous move on the part of the independent art association hosting the awards.
After spending a fortune on production with an overall budget that was “very f**king” exorbitant, as the movie’s director remarked, Avatar 2 broke several box office records and is continuing to do so even in its third week. Yet the awe-inspiring beauties of Pandora and the film’s booming success seem to have gone unnoticed by the BAFTA awards.
Avatar 2 Isn’t A Part of BAFTA’s Longlists for Best Film And Director
James Cameron‘s sci-fi/adventure sequel to Avatar (2009) has been ruling the box office ever since its release in December 2022 and just became the 10th biggest film to ever have been made. Surpassing Joseph Kosinski’s epic action hit Top Gun: Maverick, which was a billion-dollar success, Avatar 2 became the highest-grossing film of 2022 by accumulating $1.51 billion in its global circuit, as reported by THR.
Despite its worldwide commercial success, Avatar 2 seems to have missed the mark with the British Academy Film Awards as it fails to hold a spot amongst the Best Film and Director categories in the longlists. The former comprises certain masterpieces including Edward Berger’s wartime drama All Quiet on the Western Front and the iconic Tom Cruise-led sequel titled Top Gun: Maverick. Both of the aforementioned movies have also made it to the category of Best Director besides other films like Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis and Everything Everywhere All at Once starring Michelle Yeoh to name a few.
And fans are enraged, to say the least.
Fans Lash Out At BAFTA for Snubbing Avatar 2 on its Longlists
Avatar: The Way of Water got shortlisted for various accolades including the Oscars and Golden Globes. But the film’s name was nowhere to be found on the BAFTA longlists. As it happens, the same has become a rather controversial affair in the eyes of fans as they berate the award show for not doing justice by Cameron’s movie which happens to be a cinematic masterpiece. Some people even went so far as to accuse BAFTA of not putting Avatar 2 on the list since the film portrays colonization. Safe to say fans aren’t thrilled by this particular decision.
BARFTA lacks taste. They don’t know what is a good movie even if its in front of them.
— MOST Biased (@MOST_Biased) January 6, 2023
L for BAFTA
— Sadbabyyyy🦋 (@lillllymoniique) January 6, 2023
Even Spielberg is not listed. Is this some British humour we are not getting??
— Barun (@TheLordOfSea) January 6, 2023
Of course a film about colonisation didn’t get nominated by a British institution. 😂😂
— Matthew Mifsud (@MattMifsud96) January 6, 2023
It’s the best film of the year 100%. Decisions like this make the BAFTAS irrelevant.
— John (@JohnJohnnycake) January 6, 2023
While fans continue to be volatile towards BAFTA for not including Avatar 2 on its longlists, the movie, for the most part, has been doing exceptionally well all over the world, reeling in more and more profits every other day. So, not getting a BAFTA for Best Film is probably not going to put a dent in its reputation, especially since it’s already been nominated for various other awards. But at the end of the day, in the eyes of the audience at least, it’s a matter of principle more than it is about the fame.
Avatar: The Way of Water is currently playing in cinemas.
Source: Discussing Film via Twitter
