Some of Hollywood’s most renowned actors, including George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Paul Mescal, Amanda Seyfried, Denzel Washington, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Brad Pitt, were unexpectedly excluded from acting nominations for the 98th Academy Awards announced in Hollywood on Thursday. The George Clooney Oscar snub stands out amid a competitive year that has left many acclaimed performers off the list.
Notable Omissions in the Best Actor Category
George Clooney, portraying a star much like himself in the film Jay Kelly, failed to secure a nomination for best actor. Similarly, Jesse Plemons (Bugonia), Oscar Isaac (Frankenstein), Jeremy Allen White (Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere), Daniel Day-Lewis (Anemone), Joaquin Phoenix (Eddington), and Denzel Washington (Highest 2 Lowest) were all left out of the running.
Hugh Jackman’s performance in Song Sung Blue did not earn a nod, though his co-star Kate Hudson was nominated. Joel Edgerton, a key figure in Train Dreams, missed out despite the film’s multiple nominations, including best picture. Brad Pitt did not receive a nomination for his role in F1, but as a producer, he shares in the film’s best picture nomination.
Michael B. Jordan received his first nomination for his dual roles in Sinners, while Leonardo DiCaprio earned his eighth best actor nomination for One Battle After Another. Timothée Chalamet, at 30 years old for Marty Supreme, became the youngest male actor with three best actor nominations, surpassing Marlon Brando’s previous record.
The best actor nominees include Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent).
Strong Competition and Surprising Exclusions in Best Actress
The best actress category featured intense competition this year, leaving several high-profile performances unrecognized by the Academy. Amanda Seyfried (The Testament of Ann Lee), Julia Roberts (After the Hunt), Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another), Jennifer Lawrence (Die, My Love), Tessa Thompson (Hedda), Eva Victor (Sorry, Baby), Julia Garner (Weapons), Dakota Johnson (Materialists), Jodie Foster (A Private Life), and Laura Dern (Is This Thing On?) were notably absent from the nominations.
First-time nominees Rose Byrne for
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
and Renate Reinsve for Sentimental Value made the list, alongside Emma Stone, who gained her fifth acting nod for Bugonia after already winning two Oscars.
The nominees for best actress are Jessie Buckley (Hamnet), Rose Byrne (
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value), and Emma Stone (Bugonia).
Best Supporting Actor Category Sees Unexpected Absences
Several notable actors missed out on best supporting actor nominations, including Paul Mescal (Hamnet), Miles Caton (Sinners), Adam Sandler (Jay Kelly), Aidan Delbus (Bugonia), Kevin O’Leary (Marty Supreme), Josh Brolin (Wake Up Dead Man and Weapons), Idris Elba, and Tracy Letts (A House of Dynamite), William H. Macy (Train Dreams), Jack O’Connell (Sinners), Andrew Scott (Blue Moon), Josh O’Connor (Wake Up Dead Man), Mark Hamill (The Life of Chuck), and Andrew Garfield (After the Hunt).
First-time nominees Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), and Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value) earned recognition, while veterans Benicio Del Toro and Sean Penn, both featured in One Battle After Another, add to their combined seven nominations and multiple Oscar wins.
The best supporting actor nominees are Benicio Del Toro (One Battle After Another), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another), and Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value).
Noteworthy Snubs Among Best Supporting Actress Nominees
Rebecca Ferguson’s performance in A House of Dynamite was among the biggest omissions in the best supporting actress category. Other significant exclusions include Emily Blunt (The Smashing Machine), Odessa A’zion and Gwyneth Paltroe (Marty Supreme), Glenn Close (Wake Up Dead Man), Regina Hall (One Battle After Another), Hailee Steinfeld (Sinners), Mia Goth (Frankenstein), Jennifer Lopez (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Margaret Qualley (Blue Moon), Zoey Deutch (Nouvelle Vague), Felicity Jones (Train Dreams), Laura Dern (Jay Kelly), Mariam Afshari (It Was Just an Accident), and Oona Chaplin (Avatar: Fire and Water).
All nominees in this category, except Amy Madigan (Weapons), are first-time Oscar contenders.
The nominees for best supporting actress include Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value), Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value), Amy Madigan (Weapons), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners), and Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another).
Unexpected Best Picture Nominations and Absences
It was surprising that It Was Just an Accident, the Palme d’Or winner at Cannes Film Festival, did not make the best picture nominations, despite the fact that four previous Palme d’Or winners, including the Oscar-winning Parasite and Anora, secured nominations. The inclusion of the Formula One film F1 was equally unexpected, since its nominations were limited to technical categories such as editing, sound, and visual effects.
Other popular films excluded from the final list were Avatar: Fire and Ash, Weapons, and Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere. The nominees for best picture are Bugonia, F1, Hamnet, Frankenstein, One Battle After Another, Marty Supreme, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners, and Train Dreams.
Directing Nominations Highlight New Faces and Surprising Snubs
Despite Frankenstein receiving eight nominations, including best picture, its director Guillermo del Toro, nominated by the Directors Guild, was not nominated for best director, though he earned a nod for adapted screenplay. Other notable omissions include Jafar Panahi (It Was Just an Accident), Kleber Mendonça Filho (The Secret Agent), Zach Cregger (Weapons), Yorgos Lanthimos (Bugonia), Park Chan-wook (No Other Choice), Clint Bentley (Train Dreams), Richard Linklater (Nouvelle Vague and Blue Moon), Kathryn Bigelow (A House of Dynamite), Mona Fastvold (The Testament of Ann Lee), Mary Bronstein (
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
), Rian Johnson (Wake Up Dead Man), Kelly Reichardt (The Mastermind), and Eva Victor (Sorry, Baby), who was a DGA nominee.
The director nominees are Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme), Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value), and Chloé Zhao (Hamnet).
Best Original Song Category Overlooks Several Big Names
New songs created for Broadway adaptations frequently receive recognition in the best original song category, a trend seen again this year. However, Stephen Schwartz, despite two new songs from the Wicked sequel making the Oscar shortlist, was not nominated. Other notable musical omissions include Miley Cyrus (Avatar: Fire and Ash), Ed Sheeran (F1), Billy Idol (Billy Idol Should Be Dead), and Nine Inch Nails (Tron: Ares).
Diane Warren, who has received 17 Oscar nominations but never won, was among the nominees once again this year.
The songs nominated for best original song are “Dear Me” from Diane Warren: Relentless, “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters, “I Lied to You” from Sinners, “Sweet Dreams of Joy” from Viva Verdi!, and “Train Dreams” from the film of the same name.
Event Details and Hosting
The 98th Academy Awards ceremony, hosted by Conan O’Brien—who was notably not nominated for best supporting actor for his role as a therapist in
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
—will take place on March 15 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.
The George Clooney Oscar snub, along with the many other prominent omissions this year, highlights the unpredictability of the Academy’s nomination process, signaling a continuing shift toward recognizing emerging talent alongside established stars. As this year’s awards approach, the industry and audience alike await to see how these selections will influence the ongoing evolution of film recognition at Hollywood’s most prestigious event.
