The Oscars are safe… for now. Following backlash to the announcement of an “Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film” category, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has decided to scrap the award altogether. In a statement given by Academy CEO Dawn Hudson, the executive noted that “we recognize the need for further discussion with our members.”

Misguided errors such as a “Popular Film” category are becoming too common for the Oscars. Throughout the years, the Oscars have encountered dilemma after dilemma, whether it be the #OscarsSoWhite campaign or a sharp decline in ratings. The annual ceremony also suffers from a laborious runtime, bloated presentation and groan-inducing politicization. With all this taken into consideration, an award for “Most Popular Film” is not how one improves the Oscars. The Oscars are not about celebrating what is popular; they are about celebrating excellence and merit in cinema.

The Academy is often scrutinized for nominating lesser-known arthouse films instead of blockbuster spectacles that general audiences have seen- a criticism that can be viewed as the reason why some individuals do not care about the awards.

Despite being somewhat true, every Oscar ceremony has to be examined on a case-by-case basis. An example is the 82nd Academy Awards, where “Avatar” was infamously nominated for Best Picture. James Cameron’s sci-fi epic not only broke box office records; it became a cultural phenomenon. Audiences around the globe went crazy for “Avatar,” and the Oscars took notice. The film nabbed nine nominations, including Best Picture. Its total nominations were matched by “The Hurt Locker,” a war film from Kathryn Bigelow (“Detroit”). Opposed to “Avatar,” “The Hurt Locker” was grounded, realistic and cerebral, as well as being critically adored (The film sits at 97 percent on Rotten Tomatoes in comparison to “Avatar’s” 83 percent). Guess which film won? Bigelow’s smaller scale Iraq War thriller. The highest grossing film in the world was overtaken by a movie that only managed to scrounge $50 million at the worldwide box office. Per example, popularity does not and should not guarantee the most coveted award in the film industry.

It is not like the Academy is biased against popular films. There have been several instances where the biggest Oscar sweeps have gone to huge spectacles. “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” holds the record with 11 wins. In fact, many notable Oscar sweeps are dominated by “popular films,” including “Titanic,” “Ben-Hur” and “Gone with the Wind.” These films had the advantage of maintaining quality and popularity, a trait “Avatar” did not have.

The biggest issue plaguing a popularity award is how one judges a film’s “popularity.” What does it mean to be popular? If one judges by box office (either domestic or international), quality goes right out the window. “Transformers: Age of Extinction” grossed over $1 billion worldwide back in 2014. By logical assumption, it was the most popular movie of that year. It still tells us nothing about how good the feature is. Box office should never be an indicator of a film’s worth. “Twilight” was a very popular film series yet was panned by critics.   

One can see why the Oscars tried to implement a popularity award. In an age where it seems like the Oscars’ ratings and relevancy are sinking, this is an obviously desperate ploy for ratings. The problem here is with the Academy itself. The institution needs to look itself in the mirror and ask itself who it is and what it represents. This is not the MTV Movie Awards, the People’s Choice Awards or even the Golden Globes; this is the Academy Awards, the most prestigious award ceremony in the film industry.

There are numerous other ways for popular films to become part of the Oscar process, but throwing a rather useless consolation prize at the likes of “Black Panther” and “The Avengers: Infinity War” is downright insulting. Work needs to be done to improve the Academy Awards, but it should never resort to becoming a popularity contest. At this point, the Oscars would be as relevant as the Teen Choice Awards.