English

Noun

Oscar bait ‎(uncountable)

1. (film) A film perceived to have been produced at least partially in order to be nominated for, and hopefully win, an Academy Award.
   • 1968 December 16, New York Magazine, volume 1, ISSN 0028-7369, page 5:

     "O'Toole and Hepburn are memorable and matchless. You'll never see better performances. These are both Oscar bait outings.

   • 2005, Steve Pond, The Big Show: High Times and Dirty Dealings Backstage at the Academy Awards, page 261:

     Director Steven Soderbergh's Traffic was more typical Oscar bait, but the high-minded three-hour film about the drug trade along the US/ Mexican border was also inconsistent, and Soderbergh's fondness for mixing in grainy film stock and jerky handheld cameras didn't figure to endear him to older Academy voters.