CNN Money
Another Cannes best-picture prize is up for grabs at the box office, but this one isn’t a little indie from the artsy realm.
Best picture is the most prestigious award available at any movie theater. More than 100 people attend a special Oscar ceremony each year to decide on this prize.
Hollywood studios have been vying for the trophy in the year of the critical smash “La La Land,” and the crossover hit “The Big Sick.” Their campaigns have reached out to critics and Academy members.
“As a prospective Oscar voter, I can’t see myself skipping ‘Moonlight,'” said Sasha Stone, founder of The Golden Age Awards website, which honors the best in independent movies.
“But the winningest director of all time, Michael Douglas, actually ‘Saved Me’ on top of the highest vote-getter of all time, ‘Moulin Rouge.’ The 2000 Best Picture winner got 46.9% of the vote. So I guess there’s a limit to hype,” she said.
20th Century Fox and Netflix have launched large public information campaigns about two upcoming releases, “The Little Prince” and “The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected).”
DreamWorks Animation is also counting on “The Boss Baby” to bring home the bacon at the box office.
Both of those films have not made it on to critics’ top ten lists, though “The Little Prince” has eight critics’ nods and is more likely to receive attention from this year’s Oscar voters.