10 Biggest Oscar Snubs of 2019

It happens every year: the Oscar nominations are revealed, and movie nerds everywhere weep in disappointment after one of their favorites is inevitably left out of the party. This year in particular I found so many snubs and some truly baffling nominees (seriously - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs? Vice?), so, who am I to end a tradition? Here are, in my opinion, the top ten Oscar snubs of 2019:

10. Paddington 2
Snubbed for: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture

Although it saw a number of nominations last year from the BAFTAs (essentially the "British Acamedy Awards") - including Supporting Actor, Screenplay, and Picture - it turns out that Oscar voters must have forgot about this amazing, heartwarming sequel to Paddington since its stateside release in January. It's too bad - it's one of my favorites of the year!

9. Suspiria
Snubbed for: Best Make-Up and Hair, Best Cinematography

As we'll see later on this list - horror movies don't do well at the Oscars. With a few notable exceptions (including Get Out), certain deserving films often get swept under the radar, like Luca Guadagnino's cerebral remake of the 1970s classic Suspiria. With its beautiful cinematography and horrifying special effects, it's a shame his art house credibility from last year's Call Me By Your Name didn't elevate the film to "nominee" status.

8. If Beale Street Could Talk
Snubbed for: Best Picture, Best Cinematography

OK - at this point I have not actually seen it yet, but I'm still surprised not to see If Beale Street Can Talk make it to the Best Picture race. It won the AFI movie of the year award and was nominated for a whole slew of others. I'm surprised more good will from Barry Jenkins' infamous "Moonlight/La La Land" incident 2 years ago on Oscar night didn't translate into a nomination for his latest film.

7. Bradley Cooper, A Star is Born
Snubbed for: Best Director

Although he did snag a nomination for Best Actor (which I think he deserves), Bradley Cooper did not earn a directing nomination for his directorial debut, A Star is Born. Considering that this film is Cooper's baby (he acts, directs, produces, and even holds his own singing against Lady Gaga!), I think this snub is pretty damning for A Star is Born's chances at a Best Picture win.

6. Timothee Chalamet in Beautiful Boy
Snubbed for: Best Supporting Actor

Timothee Chalamet is the hot young new actor on the block, and his turn as a troubled, meth-addicted youth in Beautiful Boy seemed tailor-made for an Oscar nomination. But, despite his nomination for Call Me By Your Name last year, he was snubbed this year. I can't really explain this one - especially when there are less-likely candidates such as Adam Driver in BlackKklansman and Sam Rockwell in Vice - but perhaps there just wasn't enough good will around the movie itself.

5. Nicole Kidman in Boy Erased
Snubbed for: Best Supporting Actress

Boy Erased is a film I thought would at least sneak in one nomination, but unfortunately it went home empty-handed. I think the most egregious snub is for Nicole Kidman, who gives a fantastic performance as a mom torn between her religious beliefs and the pain she's seeing her son go through as he undergoes gay conversion therapy.

4. Toni Collette in Hereditary
Snubbed for: Best Actress

Like I said regarding Suspiria: horror films rarely crack the Oscar code. Case in point: Toni Collette's incredible, vulnerable, terrifying performance as a mother-on-the-edge in this summer's Hereditary. Although she was nominated nearly a decade ago for The Sixth Sense, Hereditary might have been a little too over-the-top for the voters.

3. Eighth Grade
Snubbed for: Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay

This one makes me sad! My favorite film of the year, Eighth Grade, got nothing! I was really crossing my fingers for a Best Screenplay nod, but unfortunately the Academy had to continually give Vice more nominations for some reason (I'm sorry, that movie should only be nominated for Best Actor and Best Makeup - it was not a good movie!).

2. First Man
Snubbed for: Best Picture, Best Musical Score, Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress

This comes as a bit of a shock, seeing as First Man is the kind of well-made, historical biopic that the Oscars usually go nuts for. However, it was not nominated in any of the major categories - the most baffling of which is Best Musical Score, which is easily one of the best of the year.

1. Won't You Be My Neighbor and Three Identical Strangers
Snubbed for: Best Documentary

Easily the biggest disappointment of the nominations announcement was the lack of either of these two amazing documentaries. Both landed in my top ten this year - one a loving ode to the TV program Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood and another about the incredible true story of triplets who find each other after being separated at birth. I've seen both movies twice now and they don't lose their power with multiple viewings. I'm shocked they weren't nominated!


That's all for now! I'll have my official Oscar predictions up some time before it officially broadcasts on Sunday, February 24. Let me know in the comments if there were any other snubs you noticed this year!