Oscar Nominees: Box Office Numbers Largest Since 2003

According to Box Office Mojo, the Oscar nominees for Best Picture this year have the highest average box office grosses since 2003, when The Lord of the Rings: Return of the Ring premiered.

The number of films that made above and below $100 million is split evenly between the films, with five on each side thanks to this year's unprecedented list of ten nominees. Avatar, obviously, was the highest grossing with a current $595.8 million. The film that earned the least amount was An Education, with its special release earning it a mere $8.8 million. The average per film is $151 million, with Avatar tripling the total alone!

Historically, the Academy has favored smaller and/or more intimate films over the most popular box office draws, but money has also always been important in deciding which of these supposedly more artistic films gets the win, as well. If this were a popularity contest, they note, Avatar would trump critics' favorite The Hurt Locker.

With this many nominees, intended to draw in a more casual viewership during the show's broadcast after last year's The Dark Knight controversy, it may seem to some that the odds of the more popular films winning the award are more likely, but it may also be a case of the Academy simply appeasing the majority while leaving room for their own favorites.

It's still nice to see that the Academy has apparently acknowledged that popular does not necessarily equate to diminished worthiness, however. Nominee Up was both a financial and critical success, and its nomination gives it the distinction of being one of only two animated films to be nominated for Best Picture, joining Disney's own Beauty and the Beast.