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This Oscar nominations 2020 have been unveiled, with Joker leading the pack with exactly 11 nods, closely followed by 1917, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and The Irishman all with 10 each.
Yet, while the Oscars are a celebration of movies and cinema, there are still those worthy artists who missed out on nominations. So, who are the biggest ommissions from the Oscar nominations 2020 list? Here's are seven standouts.
Jennifer Lopez in Hustlers
Jennifer Lopez was widely thought to be in with a fighting chance of picking up a Supporting Actress nomination for her impressive role as a motherly scheming stripper in Hustlers. Despite the actress's apparent comeback, plus some additional hype thanks to an upcoming Super Bowl appearance, J-Lo was unable to secure a nomination, losing out to Kathy Bates, Laura Dern, Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, and Margot Robbie.
Female filmmakers
After the nominations for Best Director were announced, Issa Rae quipped: “Congratulations to those men.”
Following on from the Golden Globes and BAFTAs, the Best Director category was once again missing any women. Greta Gerwig was thought to be in with a chance for Best Picture nominee Little Women, while Marielle Heller (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood) and Lulu Wang (The Farewell) were both believed to be in with a fighting chance. Yet, here we are again – another year, another sausage party.
Robert De Niro in The Irishman
Yes, Robert De Niro may already have his fair share of Oscars gold on the mantlepiece (he previously won for his roles in Raging Bull and The Godfather Part II), yet the actor was unable to secure a nomination for the Irishman. What makes this particularly surprising is the fact that the movie – in which he plays the central character – picked up 10 nominations, second only to Joker, with both Joe Pesci and Al Pacino picking up Best Supporting Actor nominations. Luckily for De Niro, there's still a chance he'll be taking home an Oscar, as he's a producer on The Irishman.
Awkwafina in The Farewell
While Awkwafina may have picked up a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, she was unable to get even a nomination for her role in The Farewell at the Oscars. Unfortunately, the critically acclaimed movie – about a Chinese-American family who decides not to tell their grandmother she has cancer – instead went completely unrewarded. Likewise, Jordan Peele's Us, which starred Lupita Nyong'o in a role believed to be an Oscars contender, was completely omitted from the awards ceremony.
Eddie Murphy in Dolemite Is My Name
Oscar voters love a comeback, so Eddie Murphy's insistence that his performance in Netflix's Dolemite Is My Name is "not a comeback" may have cost him dearly. The actor portrays the real-life actor Dolemite with humour and tint of pathos, yet was unable to secure an Oscar nomination. Another leading comedy actor-turned-awards contender was Adam Sandler – whose performance as the gambling wild-card in Uncut Gems is hugely impressive yet went completely unrewarded.
Taron Egerton in Rocketman
This was supposed to be Taron Egerton's year. The actor has been doing the awards circuit all year, hoping his charm-offensive tactic would land him an Oscar nomination. However, even with a Golden Globe win under his belt and the Academy's apparent love of musical biopics (Rami Malek won for Bohemian Rhapsody last year), Egerton missed out on the Oscar nod, and Rocketman only grabbed one nomination – for Best Original Song.
Apollo 11
One of GamesRadar+ and Total Film's favourite movies of last year, Apollo 11 – a beautiful documentary about the moon landings – missed out on a Best Documentary nomination. With Apollo 11 out of the picture, the award looks likely to go to For Sama (the other nominees are American Factory, The Cave, The Edge of Democracy, and Honeyland).
For more on the Academy Awards read our Oscars 2020 predictions piece.
