The only solution is to divide the writing Oscars into three categories: Best Original Screenplay, Best Screenplay Based On Factual Material and Best Adaptation.

Roundup: The screenplay Oscar conundrum

Mark Harris notes, as many have before him, that the Academy's Best Screenplay categorizations are a bit confusing. Why should films like "Before Midnight" and "Toy Story 3" compete as adaptations when they're not adapted from anything, simply because they use pre-existing characters? And on the original side of things, are factual or biographical screenplays really that comparable to fiction crafted entirely from the writer's imagination?