Fresh from cleaning up at the BAFTAs, The Hurt Locker team is feeling their own pain with controversy surrounding their favouritism at the upcoming Oscar awards.

The highly rated film has been engulfed by controversy after it was revealed one of the producers had broken strict rules on negative campaigning.

Nicolas Chartier, a producer of the film could soon face censure from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences after he had reportedly sent emails to thousands of Oscar voters urging them to vote for The Hurt Locker instead of a “$500 million film”.

The Hurt Locker is an independent film about a US bomb unit and one of the first films covering the controversies of the Iraq War.

It has been the clear favourite to win the Oscar for best film, despite the success of the most expensive movie ever made in Avatar.

Chartier’s email was seen as a direct attack at James Cameron, the director of Avatar, and clearly breached the academy rules against negative campaigning.

As a result, Chartier was forced to issue an embarrassing apology for his email, where he described it as “inappropriate and stupid”.

A spokeswoman for the academy declined to comment on what action, if any, might be taken against Chartier.

The Oscar for best film will be revealed at next Sunday’s Academy Awards.