“Roma” and “The Favourite” led the Oscar nominations Tuesday morning, but which expected nominees missed the mark? Below, your Carpetbagger runs through some of the highest-profile snubs and surprises.
‘A Star Is Born’ Comes Up Short
Once upon a time, Bradley Cooper’s showbiz musical seemed like it had the stuff to go all the way during award season. Yet the film hasn’t picked up any high-profile wins so far, and Tuesday morning, “A Star Is Born” was snubbed for nominations in best editing and best director, two honors that should have been easy pickups. Cooper, who eschewed plenty of all-important acting round tables this season to better focus on his debut as a director, may now go empty-handed on Oscar night: His best-actor competitor Rami Malek, lead of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” has all the momentum after winning at the Golden Globes.
‘Black Panther’ Broke New Oscar Ground, Yet …
Marvel landed its first best picture nominee with “Black Panther,” which also performed well in the technical categories, picking up a historic nomination for production designer Hannah Beachler, who became the first African-American nominated in her field. Still, it stings a bit that the academy had two chances to honor director Ryan Coogler, who also co-wrote the screenplay, and declined both.
Timothée Chalamet Is Left Out
After becoming one of the youngest men to be nominated for best actor last year, Timothée Chalamet, the “Call Me by Your Name” star, found a rougher reception with “Beautiful Boy,” in which he played a troubled drug addict. The film was met with mixed reviews and so-so box office, but Amazon still spent heavily on his supporting-actor campaign, to no avail. It was a mixed morning for the streaming service: Though “Cold War” director Pawel Pawlikowski made it into the best director race, “Suspiria” was snubbed for best hair and makeup, and rival Netflix easily picked up nomination after nomination. Speaking of which …
Netflix Makes History
Though Netflix shows are regularly showered with Emmy nominations, best picture recognition at the Oscars has eluded the company until now. On Tuesday, “Roma” earned Netflix its first nomination for Oscar’s top prize, as well as a great many other nominations, including lead actress for Yalitza Aparicio and supporting actress for Marina de Tavira, both of whom had been snubbed by the Screen Actors Guild. One notable academy snub? Editing. Yes, Alfonso Cuarón’s film is mostly composed of languid long takes, but an editing nomination is often considered a key milestone on the way to a best picture win. Then again, “A Star Is Born” didn’t crack the category, either.
A Rough Morning for Mister Rogers
After a robust year for documentaries at the box office, many pundits assumed that “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?,” Morgan Neville’s documentary about the children’s show host Mister Rogers, would be the feel-good favorite. Well, don’t take your shoes off just yet: Neville’s film was one of Tuesday morning’s most shocking snubs. With “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” out, could Ruth Bader Ginsburg documentary “RBG” become the new front-runner? In addition to its best documentary nomination, it also picked up a nomination for best song.
After a Big Win, ‘Green Book’ Does … Fine
This race-relations dramedy pulled out an upset win at the Producers Guild of America last weekend, so I wondered if it might show up in some unexpected categories Tuesday, signaling real Oscar strength. While “Green Book” did score nominations for best picture and best original screenplay, as well as for actors Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, it didn’t crack the lineups for director or supporting actress. The Producers Guild honor usually foretells the winner of the best picture Oscar, but will that still hold true this year? In a month, we’ll find out.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.