The Academy Awards Snub Demon Slayer and Other Anime with Official Nominations

With April just around the corner now, it is time for 2021 to go through its picks for this year's Oscars. The Academy Awards are slated to go live before long, and the organization revealed its official nominations this morning. As you can imagine, all eyes were on the Oscars as some surprising movies were nominated while others were ignored. And as usual, no anime managed to make its way on the list this year.

When it comes to Best Animated Feature, all of the nominees strayed far from anime. None of the films from Japan that were put out for consideration earned an official nomination, but this is hardly surprising for fans at this point. The Academy has long ignored anime films regardless of their critical acclaim with the only notable exception being Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away.

This year, films like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - Mugen Train were put forward for consideration and for good reason. The film became the highest-grossing movie in Japan to date following its premiere last October. The movie has now become the highest-grossing anime film globally, and its animation is top-notch. However, its story and artwork weren't enough to secure an actual nomination.

As for the other anime projects considered, Earwig and the Witch was listed as well as Lupin III THE FIRST, Ride Your Wave, A Whisker Away, and ON-GAKU: Our Sound. In the end, the movies that received nominations were Onward, Over the Moon, A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Armageddon, Soul, and Wolfwalkers. Clearly, Disney is still a favorite with the Oscars, but anime will have to wait once more for its time to shine.

This is far from the first time The Academy has snubbed anime following its brief interest in Miyazaki. Your Name was famously passed over for a nomination as well as A Silent Voice and Weathering With You. Most anime fans agree they gave up on nominations after these three snubs, and right now, it seems like they were right to do so.

Are you surprised by this nomination update? Or did you expect the Academy Awards to snub the medium once again? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.