Oscar for Best Picture to now have 10 contenders

Washington, June 25 (IANS) The Oscar for the Best Picture, the most-sought after honour in Hollywood, will have 10 contenders from next year instead of the short list of five so far, a media report said Thursday.

The Los Angeles Times called it "the new Academy Awards era" as it reported Wednesday's "out-of-the-blue" announcement that the Best Picture category at the Oscars will double in size to 10 films.

The "uncharacteristically bold" change caught Hollywood studios off guard and reset all the expectations for Hollywood's biggest prize, which now would seem to have room on its short list for well-regarded popcorn films such as this summer's "Up" and "Star Trek", the Times said.

That would be a major change for a "traditionally staid" award gala that is far more comfortable with art-house fare and lavish period pieces than summer blockbusters, even the well-reviewed ones, it said.

The move is a return to form of the academy's early years, which commonly saw 10 to 12 nominees in the 1930s and 1940s, and is a result of a two-year in-house search for ways to broaden the appeal of the award.

"Last year there were more movies that I thought might have fit in the nominations," Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Sid Ganis said Wednesday, acknowledging that hits such as "Iron Man", "The Dark Knight", and "Tropic Thunder" resonated far more with moviegoers than with Academy voters.