Well it seems this year has been some blowback hailing from the producers of the billion-dollar club movie “Black Panther,” who are pushing for the best picture nomination at the upcoming Oscars. Sitting with an admirable 97% on rotten tomatoes, and a 1.344 billion dollar box office, “Black Panther” is heavily lauded as a cultural phenomenon.

The Marvel film has been one of the most profitable movies of the year and one of the most acclaimed in terms of cultural significance and quality from both critics and audiences alike. As “Black Panther” looks to win the prestigious “Best Picture,” what chance will it have at this Academy Awards ceremony?

The movie is listed under the comic-book genre. This genre has been excluded from more valuable nominations and weighs on “Black Panther’s” chances as well. Although, on one particular instance, “The Dark Knight” managed to win one of the big five — best picture, directing, actor, actress and screenplay — for the late Heath Ledger’s scrupulous portrayal of the Joker. This opened the floodgates for comic-book movies to be nominated.

For the past few years, Marvel movies have been drastically improving in quality. They are more than just action-packed superhero thrillers, but most have relatable, likable characters and valuable subject matter. Oscars reward these movies with achievements in visual effects and editing, but dismiss them of having genuine quality, and seem to overlook the relevant subject matter and immense amount of talent involved with stars like Robert Downey Jr. (“Iron Man”) and Mark Ruffalo (“Avengers”) amongst many, many others.

Marvel showcases their ability to incorporate valuable subject matter into their movies with “Black Panther” especially. In exemplary fashion, it addresses diversity from its nearly all black cast, its exploration of the difficult lives of blacks in America, its celebration of black culture and the introduction of a strong, respectable and iconic black hero in Black Panther. It does all this while keeping comic-book familiarity with villains, heroes, elements of fantasy and science fiction and action-packed fervor.

To put things in perspective, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been dealing with the issue of diversity for a while now, and it has come to light in most recent years. This spawned social media statements such as the #OscarsSoWhite movement after an overwhelming majority of 2015’s nominations were awarded to white recipients while critically acclaimed movies such as “Creed” and “Straight Outta Compton” were overlooked.

Another notable occurrence was the recent scandal where over 30 women have accused film mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault for decades while the industry has stayed silent about it. This sparked the #MeToo movement, where many women who have been quiet about their sexual abuse throughout the years are bringing their struggles to light. Since then, women have been pushing for stronger roles, and bigger responsibilities in the industry. After this outcry, the Academy executives felt obligated to take action on this issue in future award shows. And as more years passed, the Academy began to restructure itself accordingly.

Many talented black directors such as Jordan Peele (“Get Out”) and Barry Jenkins (best picture winner “Moonlight”) are winning big at the Oscars and have been signed on for more projects, while female directors like Patty Jenkins are helming big movies like last year’s “Wonder Woman,” for which a sequel has already been green-lit. Last year’s best picture winner “The Shape of Water” was directed by Mexican filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro. This seems like good news for the public, but this does not alter the stereotype Academy voters abide by every year.

So, the question remains, what chance will “Black Panther” have at this years Oscars?

It has a better chance than its prior constituents, but there are still no guarantees. The Academy members have been adamant to maintain the prestige of the Oscars, especially the best picture category, so every move they make is compelled to be very meticulous in this manner. Perhaps the biggest change they have made is the introduction of the “popular film” category. The specifics of the requirements for the recipients of this award have yet to be explained. The public outcry to this announcement has been monumental to say the least. Many believe this is a ploy to help include movies that are not generally nominated for anything very important at the Oscars, such as Marvel movies. Others believe this is a move to try and keep the prestige of the best picture category from being “tainted” by un-Oscar-worthy movies. The Academy has since postponed the category to the 2020 award show, promising explanation and specifics, so as of now, this category has no effect on current movies like “Black Panther.”

It’s push for best picture is really testing the motives and priorities of the Academy in the light of all of these movements and a society whose unwavering commitment to social justice has exposed many hidden problems in the industry, as well as their criticisms for exclusion of certain types of films throughout the years. The producers of “Black Panther” are observing the Academy’s increased commitment in resolving these issues and have taken this opportunity to involve their incredibly diverse and culturally significant comic-book movie in the mix for best picture. The nomination itself will change the landscape of the Oscars by having the opportunity to pave the way for two different mediums in this industry: comic book movies and diversity.

In the end, the discussion should boil down to the fact of whether or not “Black Panther” is a good enough film to compete for a top spot on the list. Its cultural impact and possible Oscars restructuring aside, if the film is not good enough quality-wise, the Academy will not vote for it. So we’ll have to wait a little while longer to see if this upcoming Oscars ceremony will be one for the history books.