8 Big Takeaways from the Oscar Nominations
Tuesday, January 24, 2017 at 11:24AM Each Oscar nomination morning brings waves of hot takes. Here are seven things that stood out to me on first pass. What stood out for you?
Barry Jenkins directing his young cast in MOONLIGHT which received 8 nominations
Oscars No Longer So White (For Now)
As far as we are aware this is only the second year (other than 2004) where all four acting categories feature at least one actor of color. There are seven actors of color nominated this year, or 35% of the nominees. While I personally felt the anger last year was both justified and misdirected (there simply weren't that many options to feasibly nominate - and the Oscar nominees have been more diverse than Hollywood itself in years past which is where the problem truly lies), it's a great relief to see so much diversity this year. Not every year has so many acclaimed hits starring people of color like Hidden Figures, Fences, Moonlight, Loving and Lion so let's hope the Academy has plenty of options next year, too. It's a good development. We also have the first black female nominated in editing (Joi McMillion for Moonlight) and the second black man ever nominated in cinematography (Bradford Young for Arrival -- the first was British Remi Adefarasin for Elizabeth) and, most famously, Viola Davis becomes the most Oscar nominated black woman of all time with her third nomination.
Releasing After Christmas Just Doesn't Work
A24 had been there before with A Most Violent Year but the magical miraculous 20th Century Women met nearly the same fate of a shut-out...
Opening after Christmas is just much too late to build momentum. There are other examples but Hollywood never seems to learn that the best time for Oscar releases is October and November with early December working well, too... and barring that opening in the summer is a way to set yourself apart and still compete (see Florence Foster Jenkins and Captain Fantastic)...
Don't Trust Buzz on Non-Conventional Contenders
There was quite a bit of "O.J. Made in America in big categories" and "Deadpool coming on strong for multiple nominations" in the final days of the Phase One but in the end they were a documentary and a superhero flick. Documentaries almost never leave the Doc category outside of recently the Best Original Song race. Exceptions like Woodstock (1970, sound & editing), Hoop Dreams (1994, editing) and Waltz With Bashir (2008, foreign film) and The Missing Picture (2013, foreign film). Superhero films, unless Batman is in them, aren't taken seriously by Oscar voters. Final tally: O.J. Made in America nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Deadpool shut out completely.
The Unfortunate Comeback of Angry Older White Men
2016's most annoying theme continues at the Oscars with Mel Gibson getting a real Oscar comeback with a Best Director nomination at the same time that we're dealing with a new rise in anti-Semitism and sexism in the USA via the White House. (sigh)
La La Land Sweep?
The hit musical will almost certainly be the biggest Oscar winner in a decade or so on February 26th. Only Titanic and All About Eve, which both won Best Picture, received as many nominations (14). Titanic won 11 Oscars. Can La La Land do that? It remains to be seen but a clean sweep is surely out of the question (How could Ryan Gosling win in Best Actor?). But we're surely looking at the biggest winning haul since Slumdog Millionaire (2008) which took 8 Oscars. Of Note: The most Oscars ever won by a musical was 10 for West Side Story (1961) which only lost one of its nominations, for Screenplay. The second most was Gigi (1958) which won 9 in a weak Oscar year.
Golden Globes Go Their Own Way
Some people take it a sign of a downfall that the Globes aren't as predictive as they once were. We think it's a strength as awards groups shouldn't even exist if they don't have their own identity apart from Oscar. We only need one Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. But nevertheless it's worth noting that their intense love for Nocturnal Animals, followed by BAFTA's love of the same was not echoed at Oscar where only Michael Shannon was nominated (with zero precursor support, mind you). Aaron Taylor Johnson is the first Supporting Actor winner to not go on to an Oscar nomination since Richard Benjamin in The Sunshine Boys (1975)
The precursors favored Aaron Taylor Johnson but Oscar wanted Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals (2016)
Michael Shannon Don't Need No Stinkin' Precursors
Nocturnal Animals is the second time in his career where Michael Shannon has showed up in the Oscar race with zero major precursor support. The first time was Revolutionary Road (2008). Curiously the year in which he had precursor support (99 Homes in 2015) he was not nominated!
Never bet against Meryl Streep
The most-nominated actor of all time does it again with her 20th nomination... and she barely even campaigned this year compared to year's past. If you need a refresher her nearest rivals are Jack Nicholson (retired) and Katharine Hepburn (deceased) who each only made it to 12 nominations. So about four films from now, since she's nominated for breathing, Meryl will double the count of her nearest rivals. In a feat of 'Only Meryl! adorability she sent this gif as her press statement about her new record.
This is Meryl Streep's #Oscars nomination statement. Seriously, she sent a gif. pic.twitter.com/wa18Jix6Vf
— Chris Harnick (@chrisharnick) January 24, 2017
Reader Comments (61)
Unless we've missed an atypical year accidentally, this is the first year ever where all four acting categories feature at least one actor of color.
It has happened at least once before, in 2004 (Jamie Foxx, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Morgan Freeman, Jamie Foxx again, Sophie Okonedo);
Addendum: Also in 2004, Don Cheadle.
That nomination streaming is bad imo. I don't want to be reminded that Jennifer Hudson won an Oscar and GLENN CLOSE HAS NOT!
>It remains to be seen but a clean sweep is surely out of the question (How could Ryan Gosling win in Best Actor?)<
And there would have to be a tie in Best Original Song too.
I'm hoping this year is not an anomaly before we declare that #Oscarsowhite is over. The problem is systemic, and I hope the studios have realized with the success of Hidden Figures, Fences and--to a lesser extent so far--Moonlight and Lion, films about people of color can deliver an audience.
@Craver
Agree about your Glenn Close/Jennifer Hudson statement.
Happy for Michael Shannon's nomination but not hating Aaron Taylor Johnson either for his Golden Globe win. Surprising though, yes.
If I'm not mistaken, I also think this is the first year since 2008 where none of the acting nominees were carried over from the previous year.
Documentaries have been nominated for Song (An Inconvenient Truth...and others, no?).
A question. I'm pretty sure this is true of at least the acting categories, but is the supporting actress lineup the first time the nominees are majority PoC?
Love this site (have done since you hated on Swank in Million Dollar Baby and when it was a blogspot). But surely regardless of past indiscretions, the old angry white guy shouldn't be barred from being nominated when he actually pulls it out the bag? Separate art from artists etc.
Rules Don't Apply is the first film directed by Warren Beatty not to be nominated for an Oscar. Is there anyone other than Alejandro Inarritu who has directed more than a few features who has had every one of their movies nominated for at least one Oscar?
2006 also had actors of color in all four categories! Cruz, Whitaker, Smith, Murphy, Hudson, Honsou, Barraza, and Kikuchi. And two of them won their categories! (I almost said three - it's hard to remember Murphy lost, and very sad that Cruz did). This also feels like a good place to give thanks for Salma Hayek's reading of that years' Oscar nominees - the peak achievement of a now dead art form. Announcing like this was so weird.
Shoutout to David Sims, who wasn't really onboard with the Michael Shannon nod (I mostly am) - but gifted us with the best tweet about him in response to someone defending it: "Michael Shannon can convey the loneliness of existence in his damn sleep". With you there, David Sims. I'm with you there.
I was vaguely happy that Ruth Negga and Isabel Huppert were nominated. They edged out Amy Adams and Annette Bening, yes, but they seem like deserving nominees and it does make the Academy seem more diverse.
Not surprised that Streep was nominated. She gave that great speech earlier this month at the Globes, and Florence Foster Jenkins is a pleasurable film from Steven Frears.
I was surprised Hugh Grant was not nominated, although I was happy that Michael Shannon was nominated, since that is a real actor's performance.
Mel Gibson? Ugh. Was he really more deserving than other directors? That is the big stinker for me among all these nominees.
Overall, some very good choices.
My other takeaway: Best Actress continues to be a category for movies little loved elsewhere. Only Emma Stone is in a Best Picture nominee with 14 nominations. Negga and Huppert are their only nominations for their films, Streep's movie got only 1 other nod, and Portman's got only 2 other nods––and for tech categories, not even screenplay. Look the other acting categories. All Best Supporting Actress nominees are from Best Pic nominees. 4/5 of Best Actor nominees are from Best Pic nominees. 4/5 of Best Supporting Actor are from Best Pic nominees. Weiiiiiird.
A curmudgeonly Texas sheriff on the verge of retirement is bent on catching the bad guys, with lots of guns and blood. That's basically Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water and Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals. Did we really need two Oscar nominations for practically the same role? Alas, macho wins accolades. Hugh Grant's solid work as husband-to-delusional-opera-singer, meanwhile, is "too soft" and "too light" in a "feminine film." No nomination for him.
I've always gotten the feeling that Hugh Grant is not particularly loved by Hollywood, which may explain his snub. He's (sometimes sarcastically, I have to admit) often dismissed some of his female costars and said that acting is kind of a frivolous profession, so it may not be entirely surprising that the Actor's Branch snubbed him.
Nick T -- Cruz is white european but yeah, at least it was a foreign nomination. That was a strong year for diversity.
Ian -- it's what i've been saying forever. Actors who are particularly strong when paired with actresses are always less successful with Oscar. See also Cary Grant
Bill -- that's a good point but it's still annoying (i maintain that Gibson's direction was the worst part of Hacksaw Ridge)
Kirby -- it would still be a clean sweep even without a tie in song since it would win every category it was nominated for ;) but Gosling is not going to win so no clean sweep. I wonder if it can beat or tie West Side Story though.
What if SAG voters compensate La La Land's lack of Ensemble nom by giving best actor to Gosling?
The introduction of the SAG awards created a very restrictive funnel in terms of mapping the nominees: If you had SAG, Globe and BAFTA (give or take BFCA) nominations, you were all but guaranteed a nomination. That was rock solid conventional wisdom for about a decade. In the aughts, that logic was everything. If you were Cate Blanchett in The Golden Age, you could skate by with that combo.
Then Tilda lost out for We Need to Talk About Kevin (too weird). Mirren for Hitchcock (too dull). Thompson for Saving Mr. Banks (no great explanation except for Meryl). By now, it hardly seems shocking that Adams could be left off the list—and just yesterday we were talking about Portman's vulnerability.
So I disagree that these precursors have become more idiosyncratic. I think the Oscars have become more idiosyncratic. There IS a Best Actress lineup the precursors suggested and the Oscars are the ones who rejected it by picking Negga and excluding Adams.
It feels like we're living in the pre-SAG era and that's exciting.
If we're considering Penelope Cruz a woman of color than the '06-'07 Oscar race was the last time all acting categories had a person of color nominated.
Cruz was nominated in Best Actress. Hudson, Barraza, and Kikuchi in Best Supporting Actress. Whitaker and Smith in Best Actor. Murphy and Hounsou in Best Supporting Actor.
Ignore my post since this was already settled.
The Gibson thing will remain gross. And he keeps on thinking he's a legit director with new ideas. He's not and his film wasn't good. But even if it was, why are they rewarding him? Zero sense.
20th Century Women would've been an ideal breezy summer release (a la Kids Are All Right) or they just should've held off on it till Cannes or something because this mid winter release was beyond silly. The screenplay nod was sweet but this should've been a solid BP contender like HoHW.
La La Land getting a sweep? I don't think it'll win more than 5-7. It'll have a tough time pulling wins in the design and tech categories. A grand Sondheim production, this ain't.
SO pleased Deadpool didn't happen. I think we dodged a bullet there, no pun intended.
I have not seen Hacksaw Ridge yet (and the trailer looks bad) but I'm happy for Gibson's semi-comeback. Hopefully he is off the blacklist and can get quality crews & casts to work with him going forward....on the right projects.
He's proven that he can be a mighty powerful director.
As an actor, he can go away forever
I for one would be fine with Mel Gibson getting in if he had made a worthy movie, but Hacksaw Ridge sucks. I don't know how that awful movie has gotten such a pass. It's like the critics all gave it a "gentleman's C+" just so they could avoid all the hate mail they got from all the angry "values" people who probably got pissed at them when they panned The Blind Side and American Sniper.
MJS: Except they didn't even really "pan" The Blind Side or American Sniper. At worst, they "biopic panned" them. For a biopic to fall below...50% on Rotten Tomatoes (which is what actual PANNING looks like)...you need to be Diana bad.
How is "Academy Award nominee Suicide Squad" instead of "Academy Award nominee Deadpool" dodging a bullet?
@Nathaniel,
This is one of my favorite sites and I've been reading for at least 8 years now. I just love everything about it. I rarely comment, but this has been bothering about some of your posts the last few years, so here goes.
However, it still is jarring me that you don't "get" or acknowledge the #oscarsowhite from last year. You wrote:
"While I personally felt the anger last year was both justified and misdirected (there simply weren't that many options to feasibly nominate - and the Oscar nominees have been more diverse than Hollywood itself in years past which is where the problem truly lies), it's a great relief to see so much diversity this year"
The anger wasn't misdirected, it was directed in the exact right place. Rather than saying, #hollywoodsosystemicallywhite (which is clunky at best and doesn't bring attention to the issue), people of color went after Hollywood's biggest night at a time of year when all eyes are on the industry, using it as a symbol for the lack of representation and diversity in the industry as a whole. It's reminiscent of King's work for voting rights, which emphasized the right to vote throughout the Civil Rights movement, but used voting as a proxy for recognizing that Black folks were fellow citizens and humans worthy of humanity. I'd make the same comparison with the sit-ins that occurred during the civil rights movement at lunch counters and the bus boycotts - they attacked the segregation directly, but really used it as a way to further elevate the cause and call attention to the fact that Black folks were being treated in inhumane and discriminatory ways. Similarly, the battle for marriage equality wasn't just about the right to have same-sex couples walk down the aisle and be eligible to file their taxes jointly/say goodbye to loved ones, it's about the full recognition of queer relationships as being legitimate and loving relationships. It's about attacking a well known symbol, and using that to further the larger cause of equality.
Last year's #oscarsowhite campaign was well timed, because it made Hollywood squirm on its biggest night about its lack of inclusion there, but truly its lack of inclusion system wide. It also called attention to a larger problem: that people of color, and stories about them, have less opportunity in Hollywood. They have less opportunity to be made and recognized as legitimate stories worthy of consideration for funding and awards. Think about a film like Moonlight. It easily could have been a critical darling that didn't get invited to all of the big awards. That's typically what happens to films like Moonlight (think Eve's Bayou, Pariah, Middle of Nowhere), but instead had a huge campaign and people really rallied rallied behind it this year. Hidden Figures is easily a film that could have been released in October or February, made a bit of money, but may not have gotten the awards haul that it got this year.
#oscarsowhite pushed an important conversation about the way the academy awards performances and stories by and about people of color. That conversation, further, pushes a deeper one about the opportunities that are available for people of color to be in "prestige" films, about opportunity in the industry in general, and the legitimacy about stories of people of color, as well as their ability to find an audience. The #oscarsowhite campaign wasn't misguided, it was aimed squarely where it needed to be - at Hollywood on its biggest night - to help them realize that the industry has bigger problems. The campaign wasn't misguided - it chose a symbolic issue to make a larger point about inequality. That's how progress happens.
December is too late!! When will they see that!? I am so excited to see 20th Century Women regardless...
I realized Hugh Grant was going to miss out a day or two ago, but I thought ATJ would get in, not Michael Shannon. I'm surprised about Amy Adams, but I get it. Ruth Negga's film is all about her, and she's so likeable. I'm happy for her and THRILLED for 7 POC acting nominees and 4 POC Best Pic nominees!!!!
@Nathaniel - are Cruz and Sandinista Moreno not the same broad ethnicity? Surely either both are classed as 'white' or 'non-white'? Apologies if I sound ignorant, genuine question...
An Inconvenient Truth won an Oscar for Best Song.
"Sandinista Moreno", really?
Every year we have the same conversation on Cruz and Bardem's blackness. From a European perspective it's ludicrous and a bit tiresome.
I feel like the in crescendo was ruined with the new announcement. Thoughts?
@ kermit
Definitions of "white" and "of color" can be very subjective. "White" is a construct, often an aspiration and usually a weapon. European non-English speaking people (e.g., Portuguese, Spanish, Greek) are "white" people, but that doesn't mean they don't face various levels of discrimination in the U.S. (and Europe). If you ask many Latin American people of non-African descent about their "race," they might say "white," especially if they are of German or Italian ancestry. But Latin Americans with Native American heritage are people of color.
Complicated.
Lady Gaga and Diane Warren were nominated for Best Song last year for The Hunting Ground, too.
(Not to mention the fact that Southern European people, DNA speaking, can be partly African or Middle Eastern...)
Paul Outlaw: Mark the First was probably referring to the idea of it showing up in Picture, not the idea of it showing up in ANY category. Academy Award nominee Suicide Squad over Academy Award nominee Deadpool is a BAD JOKE, especially since it HEAVILY implies that the makeup branch is actually ultra conservative. Suicide Squad's makeup is...not good. The ideas that aren't flat-out terrible ("damaged" chief among them) are a bit too busy. Ayer has recently said he regrets not making Leto's Joker the main villain. Having seen Leto's Joker and not hating the overall movie as much as others seem to? That movie would have been bleeping unsalvageable. The reason Leto's Joker has a smile tattoo on his hand (also a terrible idea, because most of the worst ideas of Suicide Squad (the only one that isn't is the roster itself, because an expendable force of people who could plausibly stop Superman is actually a stronger idea than the classic concept, but the roster doesn't really reflect that) are wrapped up in Joker) is to compensate for the fact that it seems like Leto can barely smile and would have been better cast as Riddler, not Joker. Bad enough when he's a borderline cameo, but as the main villain?
The other thing about MIchael Shannon is that he came out of nowhere to sink a fraudulent supporting campaign BOTH TIMES! (Patel in Slumdog, and this year Hugh Grant)
So basically, Michael Shannon is a superhero.
Cruz is white European
But she doesn't pass for white stateside. So being considered white in your native country is irrelevant to the American racial caste system that sees Hispanics as Latinos.
GP -- i appreciate the respectful feedback. I do understand the anger and I get what you're saying about symbolism. I do think it might make a difference in the future but people are already acting like that caused this Oscar result which is ridiculous. Films take a long to get made. It is coincidence (albeit a happy one) that so many strong films about POC opened this year.
I was just frustrated last year because it became a talking point that snowballed into what were in many cases very unjustified personal attacks on Oscar voters themselves that were coming from people who clearly never followed the Oscars and were only viewing it as a racial injustice fight as if history did not exist until 2014 and as if the Oscars were the root of the problem (when the Oscars do not greenlight films and are no way involved in ffilm production) I don't like it when people ignore history so it triggered me I guess you can say
but from a symbolic perspective. Yes, it was smart.
How could Ryan Gosling win in Best Actor?
It is interesting to me that Affleck hasn't been slowed down at all this awards season even with the whiff of scandal about his past. That said, even if that did affect him in Phase 2 I think Washington would be the beneficiary rather than Gosling.
@Paul Outlaw - thank you, I (think) that makes perfect sense - essentially, somebody of Spanish or Portuguese heritage may refer to themselves as "non white" though this usually applies outside Europe and of course relies on socio-economic status within the "white majority" of a country or region?
@Peggy Sue - I forgive the snarky response as my phone's predictive text got a bit offensive there! However, I'm British and my question is/was a genuine one born of curiosity and ignorance. A long time visitor here and I don't remember seeing the matter discussed before (or I clearly would have been educated already!)
"Anti-semitism in the White House"
Does that come from Jared Kushner whose grand parents fought with the Bielski brothers i Belarus..?
I'm totally fine with anti-Trump stuff, but please, don't dumb things down to stupid levels.
I am heartbroken for Bening. On the good side, at least Hupert happened.
Also, as much as I liked La La Land , the nominations in the sound categories are a bit weird. I even complained at the time to the theater manager about the sound quality only to discover next time I saw the movie in a different theater that it was the same. I dunno ...
Michael -- i stand by my comment. the new white house has encouraged the neo nazis who are still anti-semitic. and the new white house is definitely sexist. so basically they're promoting hate in general. Not OK with it.
Random thoughts:
1) This is the first time in the expanded era that none of the Best Picture films crossed $100 mil by the time nominations were announced. Granted, three of them are very close, but the point is that there's no real blockbusters in the bunch. (Maybe "Hidden Figures.)
2) Woo hoo, this is Denzel's 2nd Best Picture nominee!
3) Why can't Ryan Gosling win? It wouldn't be the first time that the Oscars treated a movie's nominations as a packaged deal; given Casey's "past" and Denzel's "he already has two", I might end up predicting him for the win.
Here's hoping:
Picture, Actress, Film Editing, Production Design, Score, Sound Mixing - La La Land
Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Supporting Actor - Moonlight
Actor, Original Screenplay, Costume Design, Song, Sound Editing - elsewhere
(And by "hoping," I mean best-case scenario, because I would certainly rather see Huppert or Negga win than Stone, among other things.)
Another milestone: Barry Jenkins is the first Black filmmaker to earn nominations for Picture, Director and Screenplay.
@Ray & @G
1985? Margaret Avery and Oprah Winfrey; plus Meg Tilly's father is Asian from my understanding.
Oscar needed Deadpool... Deadpool didn't need Oscar (even if they wanted it).
I'm on team Moonlight, and will receive every La La Land win - but cinematography, which I can digest because it is outstanding - as a kick in the balls.
My wishes: Moonlight - Jenkins - Huppert - Mortensen - Harris - Ali.
Sorry, I love Viola Davis, but I will never support category fraud. Harris - despite some people saying against her - was really good in my opinion and deserves some praise after so many years of versatility. I'd love a 2nd Octavia Spencer Oscar, she's consistently great, but Hidden Figures is the kind of film so Oscarbaity that I prefer to see go emptyhanded.
To this day I stilll find it hard to believe that Octavia Spencer wasn't nominated for Fruitvale Station.
BIGGEST takeaway?
A24 needs to step it up and own Phase Two, not only for Moonlight's sake, but for 20th Century Women, The Lobster, American Honey, The Witch, Morris from America and Swiss Army Man. Don't forget the Spirits.