SPOILER Magazine TV & Movie Awards 2021

Growing up, one of my favorite events each year was the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, where 8- to 13-year-old Me could vote for my favorite shows, movies, and celebrities. Presenters like Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell, or Rider Strong and Matthew Lawrence would announce awards for Favorite Musical Group or Favorite TV Show. Before his foray into Oscar-nominated performances, Will Smith accepted the award for Favorite Movie for the 1996 megahit Independence Day, and a few years later, he got covered in green slime on stage! The Kids’ Choice Awards wasn’t just an entertaining event where all my favorite celebrities gathered in one place to throw t-shirts into a crowd of screaming children, but it was a recognition of things that occupied the world I loved, especially during that time in my life. And most importantly, my vote counted; I felt like I had a say in who won. Now that I’m older, I realize the amount of synergy and self-branding that was

going on at the time, but I never get disillusioned about my memories of watching it back then. After all, I loved what I was being fed. These days, my enthusiasm for the Nickelodeon awards show has transferred to the Academy Awards. I watch each film that’s nominated every year, albeit with less of an investment in who wins. After all, I don’t vote—that job is given solely to celebrities and industry folks. Likewise, I’m less passionate about my love for, say, The King’s Speech than I was for my favorite show as a kid: All That (I was a bigtime Nickelodeon kid, if you couldn’t tell). Of course, there are several awards out there that are voted on by fans and viewers (People’s Choice Awards, MTV Video Music Awards), but rarely do the big budget blockbusters and the higher-brow critical darlings get to intersect in the same place on the same stage. With the SPO!LER TV & Movie Awards, that’s our goal. Our experts here watch a LOT of content each year, both good and bad, pretentious

and populist—and our nominees reflect that. This year—our first ever—we’ve brought together mainstream hits like F9 and Cruella with the more cerebral Pig and Last Night in Soho. And yet, we still have categories such as Coolest Movie Universe and Best Plot Twist.

Recognizing the best of the best from this past year, this inaugural edition focuses on what you really want to vote on: entertainment. Whether it’s thoughtprovoking or full of explosions, we got you covered. 2021 is just the beginning. Next year’s awards will get an instant plus-up. Currently planning an in-person show for next December—with celebrities and fans in attendance—we’re in

the process of making 2022’s SPO!LER Awards an event for the ages. Think, “Kids’ Choice Awards for Grown-Ups.” The end goal is to eventually turn this into the biggest pop culture awards show in the world!

Curated for fans, by fans, The SPO!LER Awards are your chance to speak up for your own fandoms. Now, rally together if you have to, but just go out there and vote!