MCU movies have been nominated for Oscars many times — for Visual Effects, Sound Editing, etc. But their selection in a significant category that translates to the franchise’s status as good cinema has only happened twice — when Black Panther (2018) was up for Best Picture and now, with Angela Bassett in the running for Best Supporting Actress for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. But it is only now that the chances of Marvel getting its first noteworthy Academy Award are really high. Sadly, it won’t make a lick difference in hauling the MCU from the depths of its fast-depleting stock of fame.
Bassett has already won the Golden Globe and her Oscar win would have been enough to contradict the vehement claims of the likes of Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarintino who keep stressing that the MCU doesn’t qualify as cinema. Had this been the scenario two years ago, when Avengers: Endgame had broken major cinematic records and proved to be an apex example of what grand filmmaking looks like, just the presence of Bassett’s name along with the other nominees in the category would have been a resounding answer to all Marvel detractors.
But now, even if she ascends the stage to take that coveted trophy, she won’t be adding many new names to the list of people ready to defend the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Yes, she would be besting the likes of Hong Chau (The Whale), Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin), Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything Everywhere All at Once), and Stephanie Hsu (Everything Everywhere All at Once) — actresses whose nominated roles the Scorseses of the world would be more comfortable with.
While it would be a well-deserved win and will add to Bassett’s glowing resume, it would do nothing to uplift MCU from its current state of imbalance, not when the studio has devoted itself to digging its own hole with exceptional diligence in the last three years. Though running such a massive franchise is bound to be peppered with hits and misses, lately, the studio has stuck to the latter with alarming ferocity.
Yes, movies like Wakanda Forever and Spider-Man: No Way Home are stark reminders of how good the franchise has the potential to be, but they have sadly become the exceptions that fail to make the glaring issues any less prominent.
The biggest problem with Phase Four has been how most of the films and shows have remained disconnected from the larger overarching story. Yes, the first three phases had films where every superhero was engrossed in their own troubles before getting together for the bigger showdowns. But even then, their stories connected with each other and with the endgame for each phase.
Now? Almost every new superhero we have met is lost in their own world. Yes, the likes of Loki, No Way Home, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness did weave the multiversal plotline but the rest? Hawkeye, She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, Thor: Love and Thunder, Moon Knight, Eternals, etc didn’t even make a half-hearted attempt to join the Multiversal chat room.
Most of these were created with the agenda to introduce new characters in the MCU and even that isn’t done well. Either they don’t really manage to create any significant impression — America Chavez anyone? — or are rolled up in so much in the done-to-death MCU formula that their debut feels bland at best, no matter how overdramatic their presentation is.
Even the beloved Wanda’s arc has been plagued by this. Her foray into Phase Four started with WandaVision started with a heartfelt exploration of grief but ended with starting MCU’s streak of bad CGI (which is weird seeing how the studio just loves to overwork its VFX artists) that seems destined to be Phase Five’s permanent fixture as well if Quantumania is any proof. And then her resurgence as the baddie in Multiverse of Madness effectively nullified whatever uniqueness the Disney Plus series managed to inject into the franchise.
Remember what Scorsese said when trying to define why he doesn’t categorize the MCU as cinema?
“What’s not there is revelation, mystery or genuine emotional danger. Nothing is at risk. The pictures are made to satisfy a specific set of demands, and they are designed as variations on a finite number of themes.”
Well, even if the MCU catered to a set of demands and stuck to its list of themes in the past, it was doing it right. But of late, it’s like the brilliant minds behind the adaptations have thrown caution to the wind — Love and Thunder being the prime example as its penchant for slipping into parody mode shows how Taika Waititi failed to understand that being hilarious was not the only thing that made Thor: Ragnarok a success.
Angela Bassett winning would be a victory for the MCU and its loyal fandom, but given the rapid pace at which the franchise is churning out shows and films, it is becoming increasingly difficult to forget how stale it has become or the fact that it is heading towards it very plausible demise at breakneck speed.
