MUMBAI: Sigourney Weaver has lashed out at Academy Awards bosses, arguing that James Cameron should have won the Best Director award at this year‘s ceremony instead of his ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow.

Bigelow became the first ever female to take the top accolade for her gritty war drama The Hurt Locker, fighting off competition from her former husband‘s fantasy Avatar. 

Weaver, who stars in Cameron‘s sci-fi epic, is convinced that the Hurt Locker director only won the award because she was a woman.

The actress is also disappointed that The Hurt Locker beat Avatar in the Best Picture category - insisting that the epic missed out on the trophy because it is "fashionable" for films that "nobody saw" to take the top prizes.

Weaver added, "In the past, Avatar would have won because they (Oscar voters) loved to hand out awards to big productions, like Ben-Hur. Today it‘s fashionable to give the Oscar to a small movie that nobody saw."