The 94th Oscar nominations were full of surprises in both satisfying and disappointing ways, but when there are only five nominees in most categories, it鈥檚 almost guaranteed that a few favorites will miss the cut.
Here, the AP takes a look at some of the biggest shocks and upsets.
DENIS MISSES IN DIRECTOR
There is a general rule in Oscar snubs that you can鈥檛 just declare something a snub. You have to say who they should replace and the directing category this year is stacked with talent and merit, including Steven Spielberg for 鈥淲est Side Story,鈥� Paul Thomas Anderson for 鈥淟icorice Pizza,鈥� Ryusuke Hamaguchi for 鈥淒rive My Car,鈥� Kenneth Branagh for 鈥淏elfast鈥� and Jane Campion (the first woman to ever get two directing nominations) for 鈥淭he Power of the Dog.鈥� That鈥檚 all to say that it was just a competitive year for directing and Denis Villeneuve, whose 鈥淒une鈥� got the second most nominations, simply missed the cut, though he can still celebrate his personal nominations for adapted screenplay and best picture.
KSTEW GETS REDEEMED
It鈥檚 been quite a journey for Kristen Stewart on the way to her first Oscar nomination. She started out the season as the clear frontrunner for her portrayal of Princess Diana in Pablo Larrain鈥檚 鈥淪pencer,鈥� but then she missed some big nominations, including from the Screen Actors Guild and the BAFTAS, and her chances looked slim. But the acting branch of the academy decided differently. Perhaps most surprisingly is the fact that hers was the only nomination for 鈥淪pencer,鈥� which seemed ripe for Oscar recognition.
INTERNATIONAL LOVE
It was a good day for films not in the English language. Two years after 鈥淧arasite鈥� walked off with best picture and best director trophies, the increasingly global voting body showed its power Tuesday with both screenplay and acting nominations. Penelope Cruz got a best actress nomination for 鈥� Parallel Mothers,鈥� which many expected her to miss out on. 鈥淒rive My Car鈥� writers Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe were nominated for adapted screenplay and Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier shared an original screenplay nomination for 鈥� The Worst Person in the World.鈥�
That said, five best international feature nominees hardly seemed enough and many lauded favorites missed the cut, including, most notably, Asghar Farhadi鈥檚 鈥淎 Hero, 鈥� from Iran (Farhadi has won the award twice before.) The surprise in the group was Bhutan鈥檚 鈥淟unana: A Yak in the Classroom,鈥� a first for the country.
NO RESPECT FOR GAGA, HUDSON
It wasn鈥檛 a great day for famous singers in the best actress category. Lady Gaga and Jennifer Hudson were both expected to score acting nods Tuesday 鈥� Gaga for her portrayal of scorned woman Patrizia Reggiani in 鈥淗ouse of Gucci鈥� and Hudson for her soulful turn as Aretha Franklin in 鈥淩espect. 鈥� Perhaps the most surprising inclusion in the best actress category was Jessica Chastain for playing Tammy Faye Bakker, a performance that was widely praised in a film that otherwise underwhelmed.
A GOOD DAY FOR JESS(I)ES
Jessie Buckley and Jesse Plemons both emerged as surprising 鈥� but welcome 鈥� supporting acting nominees. Buckley was recognized for playing the younger Leda in 鈥淭he Lost Daughter 鈥� and Plemons for his turn as George Burbank in 鈥淭he Power of the Dog.鈥�
鈥� AND COUPLES
Speaking of Plemons, his partner and mother of his two children, Kirsten Dunst, also scored her first ever Oscar ( or shrimp, as she and her friends say ) nomination for playing the fragile Rose in 鈥淭he Power of the Dog.鈥� Likewise, Javier Bardem (for playing Desi Arnaz in 鈥淏eing the Ricardos鈥�) and Penelope Cruz became the sixth married couple to get nods in the same year.
SPIDER-MAN FALLS TO EARTH
鈥淪pider-Man: No Way Home鈥� will have to be content with simply being one of the highest earning films of all time. Though it became increasingly unlikely that it would score a best picture nomination after several big guilds, including directors and producers, passed it over, there was still some hope (possibly mostly from network execs praying for the biggest blockbuster of the pandemic to lure audiences to the Oscars telecast). Alas, Spidey and friends got only a single nomination, for achievement in visual effects.
`CODA鈥� PULLS THROUGH
The folks at Apple TV+ are certainly celebrating today with three nominations for 鈥淐ODA,鈥� a heartwarming favorite that was in danger of peaking too early with its premiere at last year鈥檚 Sundance and summer release. Not only did it get a coveted best picture nomination (a first for the streamer), but Troy Kotsur became the second deaf actor to ever get a nomination and director Sian Heder scored one for adapting the screenplay, too.
DENCH OVER BALFE AND NO NEGGA
The supporting actress category was full of surprises, most notably Judi Dench for 鈥淏elfast鈥� over her co-star Caitriona Balfe. Many were also hoping Ruth Negga would get through for her turn as a light skinned Black woman in Rebecca Hall鈥檚 鈥淧assing,鈥� especially considering both SAG and BAFTA singled her out, but it was not to be.
BRADLEY COOPER SCORES, BUT NOT FOR ACTING
Bradley Cooper got his fourth best picture nomination for producing 鈥淣ightmare Alley鈥� (others are for 鈥淛oker,鈥� 鈥淎 Star Is Born鈥� and 鈥淎merican Sniper鈥�), but he was a fan favorite to score an acting nod this year, not necessarily for his leading role as Stanton Carlisle in 鈥淣ightmare Alley鈥� but for his small scene-stealing turn as the hotheaded Jon Peters in 鈥淟icorice Pizza.鈥� Should he have been nominated and won, he would have been among a small group of Oscar-winning actors who鈥檇 appeared in less than 10 minutes of a film, the most recent of which was Judi Dench in 鈥淪hakespeare in Love.鈥�
鈥� Lindsey Bahr THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
