The only names that get movie buffs as riled up on Oscar nomination morning as the ones who are announced as nominees, are the ones whose names don’t get called. Every year there’s films, actors, actresses, and directors that — often times unforgivably — get left out in the cold by the Academy, and this year was certainly no exception. In fact, this year’s announcement had two of the biggest snubs in recent Oscar history when Kathryn Bigelow and Ben Affleck were not nominated for Best Director for their films Zero Dark Thirty and Argo.
Bigelow, a previous Best Director winner for her work on another hard-hitting war film, The Hurt Locker, has been considered a shoo-in this entire awards season for her work on the controversial ZDT. Just days after giving a rousing speech at the National Board of Reviewawards and all but dominating the awards circuit thus far, Bigelow’s omission from the list is not only an egregious one, but a downright shocking one. Was it all the uproar about the torture scenes? The ongoing investigations? And, if so, why did Bigelow take the fall for it, while the film itself (which earned five nods overall, including Best Picture) and writer Mark Boal were left unscathed? It’s a question that will hang over the Academy for years to come. Of course, the worst part of all of this, aside from the fact that Bigelow could have made Oscar history for women, is that somewhere, Bret Easton Ellis feels validated.
But Bigelow wasn’t the only snub in the Best Director category. Ben Affleck, who has long been expected to be nominated for his work behind and in front of the camera for Argo, has come up empty once again despite having three Oscar-friendly films in a row (Gone Baby Gone, The Town, Argo.) While the film itself is up for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Affleck being left out in the cold by the Academy is quite a blow for the star who built his way back from tabloid fodder and punchline to one of the most respected directors around. Why doesn’t the Academy love a good comeback story?
Both Bigelow and Affleck’s are both nominated by the Director’s Guild of America, only to have their Oscar spots filled by category upsetters Silver Linings Playbook‘s David O. Russell and Beasts of the Southern Wild‘s Benh Zeitlin. Moreover, their snubs could have a huge impact on their respective films Best Picture odds. Will it be all Steven Spielberg and Lincoln from here on out? It’s a pretty safe bet.
Of course, Bigelow and Affleck were hardly the only Oscar nomination snubs this morning (though, they were most certainly the most shocking and downright confusing.) Check back with us to see our full list of snubs in which we ponder how Magic Mike‘s Matthew McConaughey and Django Unchained‘s Leonardo DiCaprio (what’s a guy gotta do?!) were left out of the Best Supporting Actor category or how The Perks of Being a Wallflower sadly had to sit off to the sidelines in the Best Adapted Screenplay race.
Which Oscar nomination snubs irked you the most? Tell us in the comments section below.
The 85th Academy Awards host by (Oscar nominee!) Seth MacFarlane airs on ABC on Sunday, February 24.
[Photo credit: Jonathan Olley/Columbia Pictures]
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