The 10 Oscar snubs of 2015
The Oscar nominations for the 87th Academy Awards were announced yesterday, and despite most us knowing who would get nominated, there were a couple of surprises which ended being those who were snubbed.
For those who don’t know what ‘snub’ means in the awards season, it’s when a recipient, film or TV show deserved a nomination, but ended up being rejected for it.
So, without further ado, we count down the top 10 Oscar snubs of 2015:
1. Ava DuVernay for Best Director – Selma
If DuVernay received a Best Director nomination, then it would’ve made her the first female black director to ever receive this accolade. But alas, the Academy never gave it one thought despite DuVernay receiving accolades from other award institutions including the Golden Globes. This snub was seen coming as DuVernay and her film Selma were snubbed in other prominent awards such as the Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild of America. However, the Academy has shown love for DuVernay’s film nominating Selma for Best Picture and Best Original Song.
2. David Oyelowo for Best Actor – Selma
Among the other snubs Selma received, Oyelowo’s nomination was one of them despite the high praise and several nominations from other award organisations. Oyelowo was completely thrown out and replaced by Bradley Cooper who hardly received any nominations in other major award organisations.
3. Jennifer Aniston for Best Actress – Cake
Many thought that Aniston would take that fifth slot for her performance in Cake as the actress received a nomination at almost every major award organisation. However, the Academy gave the fifth slot to Marion Cotillard for Two Days, One Night instead. Aniston’s snub was probably due to the fact that she usually does comedy films and hardly any drama.
4. Joaquin Phoenix for Best Actor – Inherent Vice
Many knew that a snub for Phoenix was inevitable due to the vast amount of competition in this category. But nonetheless Phoenix was snubbed.
5. The LEGO Movie for Best Animated Feature
Probably the biggest snub and surprise was The LEGO Movie who despite being critically acclaimed by critics and general moviegoers alike who both deemed it the best animation film of 2014 received no love from the Academy whatsoever. On a more positive note, the film’s song Everything Is Awesome received a nomination for Best Original Song.
6. David Fincher for Best Director – Gone Girl
Sadly, the legendary David Fincher never made the cut for Best Director for the well-received Gone Girl, but luckily the Golden Globes and some other award institutions acknowledged him.
7. Gillian Flynn for Best Adapted Screenplay – Gone Girl
With Flynn being omitted from this category, there are no females nominated in this category whatsoever.
8. Foxcatcher for Best Picture
Strangely enough, Foxcatcher’s director Bennett Miller received a Best Director nomination, but his film didn’t even secure a Best Picture nomination which doesn’t make any sense. For you ask me, Ava DuVernay should’ve taken Miller’s slot as her film Selma secured a Best Picture nod.
9. Jake Gyllenhaal for Best Actor – Nightcrawler
The Academy usually adds actors/actresses from drama films, and with Nightcrawler being more of a thriller, Gyllenhaal’s chances were risky. Thankfully though, the other major awards institutions gave the actor his rightful chance.
10. Jessica Chastain for Best Supporting Actress – A Most Violent Year
The Academy opted for Laura Dern instead for her performance in Wild despite the actress hardly receiving accolades in most major award institutions.
