Can Harry Potter win an Oscar?

The blockbuster series has come up empty at past Academy Awards — but critics are quite enchanted by the massively popular Deathly Hallows Part 2

Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson attend the New York premiere of 'Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2': Some critics say the series' final film deserves a Best Picture
(Image credit: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

Harry Potter may have defeated Voldemort and saved the wizarding world, but there's one accomplishment that's still eludes him: Oscar. Over the course of the first seven Harry Potter films, the franchise racked up nine Academy Award nominations — all in the technical categories — and no wins. Could Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 be the film that changes that? Not only is the eight installment of the series shattering box-office records, it has cast a spell over critics, too. Its 97 percent critics' approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes is the highest by far for any film in wide release this year, besting presumed Best Picture contenders Tree of Life and Midnight in Paris. So will Hollywood send off the blockbuster franchise with its first ever Best Picture nomination?

Harry has a chance... but it's still early: Academy voters have a great opportunity to reward "not just one acclaimed movie, but the whole beloved franchise," says Gary Sussman at Moviefone. But while the latest Potter flick may be the best, most successful movie so far this year, there are still six months of Oscar contenders to consider — and those films are the more Academy-friendly "biopics, literary adaptations and historical dramas." Still, the Academy hosted a screening that earned an enthusiastic response from voters, an "encouraging sign" that the movie is being seriously considered "on its merits," rather than being dismissed as a kiddie film.

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