The winner of the Oscar Fan Favorite Award goes to Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead. The zombie action movie premiered on Netflix in May 2021.
If this category sounds new to you, that’s because it is. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced this brand new category in February, in an effort to “build an engaged and excited digital audience.” But to be clear: Snyder has not won a statue for this award. It was merely Twitter poll. But hey, they announced it at the Oscars!
Previously, the Academy tried to get a “most popular film” category in order to encourage more viewers, but pushback from critics and Academy members meant it never manifested.
Unlike the scrapped Most Popular Film category, the Fan Favorite Award is not decided by Academy votes, but by Twitter users. Still, it was planned to be announced on air, which sparked some outrage considering a selection of craft awards were shelved from the broadcast. Additionally, the fact that many of the top 10 list came from highly organized fan campaigns has also sparked some discussion about the category.
The “win” means Snyder is two-for-two at the 2022 ceremony. Along with the “fan favorite” award, Zack Snyder’s Justice League was also voted as having the most “cheer-worthy” moment in movie … history? It’s kind of unclear, but people on Twitter love the scene where The Flash enters the Speed Force, apparently.