The Golden Globes are over and the Academy Awards are upon us. 2015 was an interesting year, and there are no clear contenders going into the nominations, which will be announced on Thursday morning. One of the biggest speculations going into the announcement is whether or not Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be nominated, which begs the question — how many Oscars does Star Wars have, as a film franchise?
So far, the only Oscar that The Force Awakens has is Oscar Isaac and that's the only one it needs, am I right ladies and gents? Praise. The film was not nominated for any Golden Globes or Producer's Guild Award, though its BAFTA nominations and inclusion on the AFI Top Films of 2015 list makes it a contender. What about the rest of the Star Wars films? The Academy isn't exactly known for being sci fi and fantasy friendly. Are they ever considered Oscar-worthy?
The Star Wars franchise has actually gathered nine Academy Awards in total. Most of them are technical, which is sadly to be expected for a blockbuster film. The six films have received even more nominations. Here is a quick breakdown of how every Star Wars movie did at the Academy Awards, and what we can expect this year for The Force Awakens.
A New Hope
Number of Nominations: 10Number of Wins: 6Categories: Art Direction, Costumes, Original Score, Sound, Film Editing, Visual Effects, Original Screenplay, Best Picture, Supporting Actor for Alec Guinness, and Director
The film also received a Special Achievement For Ben Burtt in Sound. The most interesting win, for Star Wars insiders, is the one for film editing — because it went to George Lucas' now ex-wife Marcia Lucas, and her name is no longer anywhere to be found on copies of the film. Drama!
The Empire Strikes Back
Number of Nominations: 3Number of Wins: 1Categories: Sound, Score, Art Direction
The sequel did significantly worse, with an additional Special Achievement In Visual Effects award, but not terrible.
Return Of The Jedi
Number of Nominations: 4Number of Wins: 0Categories: Art Direction, Sound, Visual Effects, Sound Effects
This film did not win in any competitive categories, only another Special Achievement In Visual Effects.
The Phantom Menace
Number of Nominations: 3Number of Wins: 0Categories: Sound, Sound Effects, and Visual Effects
Back in 1999, the much-anticipated prequel did not do so well.
Attack Of The Clones
Number of Nominations: 1Number of Wins: 0Categories: Visual Effects
Episode II lost its only nomination to another high profile sequel that was making strands in CGI technology — The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
Revenge Of The Sith
Number of Nominations: 1Number of Wins: 0Categories: Makeup
The final nomination is, interestingly enough, a Star Wars first. So, it's been a steady decline since 1977, though every Star Wars film has been nominated in at least one category, which is pretty cool.
Could The Force Awakens be the film to break that streak and bring Star Wars back to Academy Award glory? I certainly hope so. I think it's likely that it will get at least a few nominations in technical categories, and John Williams could get a nostalgia nod for Best Score. The movie came out late in the year and everything surrounding it was very secretive — which is why I've been telling myself that it got snubbed at the Golden Globes. However, it was the biggest movie of last and maybe any year ever, so to be completely shut out of the Oscar nominations would be shocking, as well as a break in the Star Wars tradition.
Images: Lucasfilm; Giphy (6)
