The score for The Dark Knight, Batman’s greatest film and this year’s highest grossing, was previously disqualified from the Best Score Academy Award because five composers were listed on it’s music cue sheet: Hans Zimmer, James Newton Howard, music editor Alex Gibson, ambient designer Mel Wesson and composer Lorne Balfe.

However, things have suddenly changed…

From The LATimes:

My sources say the Motion Picture Academy has reversed its decision to disqualify the score for “The Dark Knight.” Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard, who collaborated on the music, will now be able to compete in the best original score category. The Academy had ruled the score ineligible last month, saying there were too many composers–five, in all–listed on the music cue sheet. I can’t get the Academy’s executive director Bruce Davis on the phone, but I’ve seen an Academy release saying its music branch executive committee voted to change the decision last Friday.

So, there was some sort of vote where the Motion Picture Academy decided that it would be okay to let five composers run in this category, because…?

Either it’s always been eligible or it shouldn’t be. We don’t remember Moulin Rouge getting a Best Original Song nom because “Come What May” was originally written for Baz Luhrman’s Romeo + Juliet. The Academy seemed pretty set on making sure that didn’t happen.

We guess if you make almost $1 billion dollars, rules change.