Renowned director Judd Apatow has challenged the Academy’s classification judgments on X and Twitter in the thick of the impending Oscar season. His opinions over Greta Gerwig’s summer hit ‘Barbie‘ ignited a contentious discussion inside the business.
The spat between Apatow and the Academy adds a level of complexity to this year’s award season. If anything is promised amidst this debate, there is an interesting award list coming up this month.
Is ‘Barbie’ An Adapted Screenplay?
Judd Apatow, the celebrated filmmaker of films like ‘Knocked Up’ and ‘This Is 40’, expressed his displeasure with the Oscars. He replied to a tweet by New York Magazine, starting the debate ‘Barbie original or Barbie adapted‘. Openly disagreeing with the Academy’s decision to classify Greta Gerwig‘s hit motion picture, ‘Barbie’, as an adapted script rather than an original.
It’s insulting to the writers to say they were working off of existing material. There was no existing material or story. There was a clear box. https://t.co/8phHXmag7Q
— Judd Apatow 🇺🇦 (@JuddApatow) January 6, 2024
According to Apatow, such labeling is an insult to the writers, highlighting the lack of pre-existing content or a developed story, but rather a clear creative vacuum. The filmmaker wrote on Twitter. “There was no existing material or story. There was a clear box.”
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‘Barbie’ Campaigns for the Original, But AMPAS Labels It Adapted
The Fifty Shades of Pink comedy unexpectedly contends for a best-adapted screenplay nomination despite Gerwig’s initial drive for original screenplay recognition.
The conflict stems from different standards across award organizations, with the Academy claiming pre-existing dolls, Barbie and Ken, as the justification for the adapted designation. At the same time, the Writers Guild of America maintains the original work categorization. The squabble sets up an exciting awards-season battle.
The Academy members who are eligible to vote will only be allowed to vote for the ‘Barbie’ script. The script is written by Gerwig and co-written by her husband, fellow Oscar winner Noah Baumbach. With the official voting taking place on January 11th, we have time to mull over the categorization of 2023’s summer super hit.
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