The new Robbie Williams biopic Better Man arrives next week and stars a CGI monkey. For the film, the British musician wrote the song “Forbidden Road,” and it has just been removed from the Oscars shortlist for Best Original Song.
According to Rolling Stone, members of the Academy’s Music Branch received a letter announcing that the tune has been disqualified because it allegedly “incorporates material from an existing song that was not written” for the film. An Academy representative confirmed that it was Jim Croce's 1973 track “I Got A Name,” which was penned by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel and used in the movie The Last American Hero. Fox is one of the three governors for the Academy’s music branch.
The eligibility rules for the Oscars’ Best Original Song category include that the words and music must be “original and written specifically for the motion picture.” Hear the two songs below.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=seZaxbHjxtA
https://youtube.com/watch?v=O_BEFyNNIvM
