Everybody's fighting about Oscar "snubs" since nominations were announced.
It's been a while. The last time I wrote an Almost There piece was nearly a year ago, last February, still reeling from Danielle Deadwyler's lack of an Oscar nomination. Since then…nothing. Personally, I needed a break from the format, and maybe you did too. While the race for gold can be used to contextualize and remember films and performances of yesteryear, it also limits what one can discuss and how. In any case, the series has been on pause for enough time, so let's welcome its return on the heels of the latest batch of Oscar nominations.
That reminds me - this comeback merits some oomph. Because of that, I'm planning something special for the following weeks…
Usually, I do a whole series of mini-analysis to commemorate the year's actors who came close to an Oscar nod but failed to get it at the last minute. However, that limits the depth of each assessment, and it often feels like I'm giving the short shrift to some remarkable work. So, to change things up, multiple folks will get the full Almost There treatment, with at least one per category. Next week will start with a Supporting Actress contender and end with a double-whammy of Best Actor wannabees. Then, the week after, it shall be Best Supporting Actor near and dear to my heart and we'll finish on the year's biggest so-called "snub" after that.
It's no use hiding who waits for us at the end of this Almost There journey. It's Barbie herself, Margot Robbie, whose lack of a Best Actress nomination unleashed psychotic levels of social media outrage but also elevated the Australian star to a pantheon of unfortunate Oscar hopefuls. She's now one of fourteen thespians nominated at SAG for multiple individual achievements but later ignored by AMPAS for those same performances. If one considers she has missed in Supporting Actress for Mary Queen of Scots and Actress for Barbie, Robbie is just the seventh to "snubbed" in both categories.
That's all fine and dandy, but another data set inspires and warrants even more attention for me. As of this latest nomination announcement, Margot Robbie joins an exclusive club of actors who secured nominations in all four major Oscar precursors – SAG, BAFTA, Golden Globes, and Critics Choice – without a corresponding nod from the Academy. If there's ever someone who deserves the Almost There treatment, it's these actors. Since 1995, the first year when this awards quartet existed, these are the performances that got earmarked for all yet didn't quite make it to the Oscar lineup (click the underlined titles to read past Almost There coverage on those same performances):
Leonardo DiCaprio in THE DEPARTED (2006)
Tilda Swinton in WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN (2011)
Marion Cotillard in RUST AND BONE (2012)
Tom Hanks in CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (2013)
Emma Thompson in SAVING MR. BANKS (2013)
Daniel Brühl in RUSH (2013)
Jake Gyllenhaal in NIGHTCRAWLER (2014)
Amy Adams in ARRIVAL (2016)
Timothée Chalamet in BEAUTIFUL BOY (2018)
Lady Gaga in HOUSE OF GUCCI (2021)
Caitriona Balfe in BELFAST (2021)
Viola Davis in THE WOMAN KING (2022)
Margot Robbie in BARBIE (2023)
You have to wonder if the Unlucky Thirteen will become the Unfortunate Fourteen or even Fifteen next year. Time will tell, but for now, let's focus on the present season. After all, it's reaching its final phase, and everyone everywhere is mad about something.
Are you excited about the return of the Almost There series? Which performances would you like to see covered as we move forward?