Any movie fan knows that it’s rare for your personal favorite to make it to the year’s biggest award show. The people who vote for the Academy Awards are a tough bunch, especially when it comes to horror movies. Every year, it seems like a major genre film or a great performance goes unnoticed by the general public.
A nomination for an Oscar will “validate” a movie in many ways, and it could really help an actor step up their game. So, for this countdown, let’s look at a few of The Oscars’ most shocking acting snubs in horror movies.
The only requirement for this list is that it needs to be a horror performance that didn’t get any awards and has really good acting. We need to see performances that go beyond blood and scares and really make us feel like we’re being shaken to our core.
9. Mia Farrow in Rosemary’s Baby
The fact that Mia Farrow was not nominated for Rosemary’s Baby still astounds me today.
With the exception of the obvious genre bias, this felt like a lock for a nomination because of the outstanding work Farrow did and how she changed for the movie. And the fact that another actress was nominated and won for the same movie made it even stranger.
It feels so wrong to give this movie just one acting performance prize, and it wasn’t for Farrow’s gripping portrayal of a mother and her paranoia, without taking anything away from the Oscar-winning Ruth Gordon. In all honesty, I got the impression that the Oscar voters were unwilling to support this woman because they were worried about the increasing tyranny she was facing.
Also Read: Top 10 Highest Paid Actors In The World Of 2022: Catch Here!
8. Nicole Kidman in The Others
If you know your history, Nicole Kidman’s trip to the Oscars is fascinating.
Her win for The Hours established her as the mega-star we all recognized, but there’s a film from the previous year that strikes me just as much. For once, I’m not referring to the fun classic Moulin Rouge, but rather to her gothic masterwork, The Others.
Another powerful look at a mother’s situation that voters who feel too disconnected disregard. If this version of The Others was released in 2020, it would be termed “elevated horror,” and people would be clamoring for Kidman to receive an Oscar nod. Or, like earlier cases, it could wind up being completely disregarded by their peers.
7. Fredric March – Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
Though Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff became icons for their roles as the iconic Universal monsters Frankenstein and Dracula, they were never nominated for an Academy Award for their work.
Nevertheless, Fredric March was nominated for bringing one legendary horror creature to the big screen.
In the novel Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a scientist produces a chemical that transforms him into a demented lunatic. March assumed effectively dual parts, but he is genuinely terrifying as the animalistic Mr. Hyde.
6. Linda Blair – The Exorcist
Since The Exorcist is thought to be one of the best horror movies ever made, it’s not too surprising that it got the Oscars to change their minds about the horror genre. Ellen Burstyn and Jason Miller were both nominated, but Linda Blair’s role as Regan is by far the best.
Blair does a good job of playing Regan as a sweet and innocent young girl, but she really shows her skills when Regan is taken over by a demon. She turns this little girl into a shocking and horrifying personification of evil.
5. Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs
The Silence of the Lambs, which won five of its seven Oscar nominations, starred as the movie industry’s go-to cannibal doctor.
The movie, which is based on the Thomas Harris novel, follows young FBI agent Clarice Starling (Jodi Foster) as she confronts the brilliant but imprisoned Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) about how to arrest a vicious killer who skins his victims.
One of the most captivating cinematic chess battles that spectators and critics had ever seen was brought to the screen in this gloomy and extremely unromantic 1991 Valentine’s Day movie.
4. Michael Rooker in “Henry
In “Monster,” directed by Patty Jenkins, Charlize Theron played serial killer Aileen Wuornos, and her performance earned her an Academy Award.
In the grand scheme of things, a performance that is terrifyingly subversive is still a good performance.
It’s strange that Michael Rooker, nearly two decades before his breakthrough performance in John McNaughton’s “Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer,” was not recognized for his efforts.
3. Tim Robbins in “Jacob’s Ladder”
“Jacob’s Ladder” by Adrian Lyne is an odd movie. Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins), who served in Vietnam, starts to have scary hallucinations and broken memories of his time there. There are demons at parties, and tentacles in the subway, and Jacob is even told by psychics that he has already died.
“Jacob’s Ladder” is a horror fan’s dream because it is made up of strange, dream-like flashbacks to his service. It’s also very good, and both Lyne’s stylish direction and Robbins’ amazing performance help a lot.
2. Lupita Nyong’o in Us
Lupita Nyong’o played a significant role in the commercial success of the film Us, which was a huge blockbuster at the box office. She portrays not one but two complex roles in the show.
Red and Adelaide gave off the impression of being two very distinct individuals, despite the fact that they had the same face and were portrayed by the same actress. It is because of her performance that the movie is able to evoke such a range of feelings in its audience members. The Academy’s decision to ignore her is beyond comprehension.
1. Toni Collette in Hereditary
Toni Collette gives a stunning performance in the film Hereditary.
Her “I am your mother” monologue, emotions to her ordeals, the portrayal of fury and dread, and everything else about her performance were spot-on. I think she should have been nominated for an Oscar for her performance in this.
Comments are closed.