The Academy has, with limited success, tried to limit the influences of pressure groups and promotion, box office gross receipts, and studio public relations and marketing on voting results. It has also attempted to limit votes for melodramatic sentimentality, atonement for past mistakes, personal popularity, and "prestige" or epic scale, but those influences have often had a decided effect upon the outcome of some of the poll results. Unfortunately, the critical worth, artistic vision, cultural influence, and innovative qualities of many films are not given the same voting weight.

Especially since the 80s, moneymaking 'formula-made' blockbusters with glossy production values have often been crowd-pleasing titans (and Best Picture winners), but they haven't necessarily been great films with depth or critical acclaim by any measure. However, in the last decade or so, many Best Picture picks have been modest performers at the box-office, while the biggest blockbusters (i.e, superhero films) have mostly underperformed as award winners.

Please note: The following charts contain possible alternatives (albeit sometimes opinionated and subjective) for some of the awards given throughout Academy history. In some cases, the 'worst' honoree only means that some other more deserving performer or film might or should have been selected.