How many Oscar nominations do you need to get before you're considered “too late” to win?
Is Annette Bening, who earned her fifth nomination this year for her portrayal of long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad, behind the times? What about Carey Mulligan, now nominated for the third time, for the poise and strength she brought to “Maestro”? Maybe? Can you be behind if you are not yet 40? How about 30? (Asking about Saoirse Ronan, who has already racked up four nominations without winning.)
And consider Paul Giamatti, famous for his gruff, sad turn as a miserable high school teacher in “The Holdovers.” He is 56 years old (like Mark Ruffalo, another late actor), and this is only his second Oscar nomination, his first as a leading man. That's a slim resume. But Giamatti owns three individual Screen Actors Guild awards, an Emmy and three Golden Globes, making the Oscars seem like an outlier. He wasn't even nominated for “Sideways,” a travesty that leaves Giamatti not only due for, but in line for, a belated apology from the academy.
The “backward” Oscar narrative is not the same as the career achievement campaign boost that three-time nominee Robert Downey Jr. is getting this year for “Oppenheimer” or that Jamie Lee Curtis benefited from last year when won the honor of supporting actress. for “Everything, everywhere, at once.”
And the narrative often doesn't work, especially when tied to a movie that doesn't appeal to voters. Angela Bassett lost to Curtis last year, although many believed she was his “her moment.” (Was she ever going to win for a Marvel movie?) And Glenn Close's long-awaited coronation didn't go as planned when she lost to Olivia Colman for “The Favorite” in 2019. Close's nomination was her only film, “The Wife”, received. Colman's film got a 10.
But if the time is right, Oscar voters will be more than happy to reward a legend when the time comes. Who else is missing a moment on the podium? Here's a list, sorted alphabetically. (The years of the films indicate the time of their release.)
amy adams
Nominations: 6
Should have won by: “Junebug” (2005), “The Master” (2012)
Why doesn't Amy Adams have an Oscar? She should have already taken home at least one Academy Award, maybe two, starting with her charming and comic performance as the chatty pregnant wife in “Junebug.” She was even better in Paul Thomas Anderson's “The Master,” playing essentially two characters: the public and private Peggy Dodd, one motherly and gentle, the other pathologically controlling and suspicious. This woman would have a meal with Lady Macbeth. Is there anything Adams can't do…well, other than win the Oscar? This is going to happen, sooner rather than later.
ANGELA BASSETT
Nominations: 2
Could have won for: “What's Love Got to Do with It” (1993), “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (2022)
Bassett is so far behind that after losing last year, the academy decided to give her an honorary Oscar to correct the oversight. “Angela Bassett is a great actress: she got an Oscar nomination for a Marvel movie. That's like getting a Pulitzer Prize for a comment on Reddit,” host John Mulaney said at the Governors Awards ceremony. That night, Bassett gave a powerful speech that underscored how vital she remains. Yes, an honorary Oscar is an Oscar. But someone needs to give this woman a role that will also give her a competitive trophy.
Glenn close
Nominations: 8
Could have won for: “Fatal Attraction” (1987), “The Wife” (2017)
Close won the Golden Globe and then the Screen Actors Guild Award for “The Wife,” but not the Oscar. He shares the record with Peter O'Toole as the most nominated actor without winning. That's good company.
TOM CRUISE
Nominations: 3
Should have won by: “Magnolia” (1999)
Could have won for: “Jerry Maguire” (1996)
Cruise has been in action hero mode for so long that it's almost hard to remember the acting heyday when he was reciting movies like “Jerry Maguire,” “A Few Good Men,” “Eyes Wide Shut,” “Magnolia,” ” Minority Report” and “Collateral”. What happened? Did “Lions for Lambs” break him? Will he return to playing recognizable human beings after the release of the eighth (!) film “Mission: Impossible” next year? Cruise ends to announce a deal with Warner Bros. to develop films that would be a combination of original productions and franchises. So maybe there is a glimmer of hope. But the pact was also announced as a “strategic partnership,” so… probably not For Cruise, saving Hollywood seems reward enough.
WILLEM DAFOE
Nominations: 4
Should have won by: “The Florida Project” (2017)
Could anyone else deliver an Oscar-worthy bubble-burping performance? Dafoe wasn't even nominated for his charming turn as the sweet, manic scientist in “Poor People,” just as he was overlooked for his lonely lighthouse keeper in Robert Eggers' “The Lighthouse.” One of these years, Dafoe will win for the strange magic and joy he brings to every role he plays. And you can bet we'll sing a sea song in his honor when it happens.
SAMUEL L. JACKSON
Nominations: 1
Should have won by: “Pulp Fiction” (1994)
You could have been nominated for: “Django Unchained” (2012)
Like Bassett, Jackson holds an honorary Oscar. And like Bassett, he needs the competitive honor. Has Quentin Tarantino written the role that will seal the deal? I'd like to think so, although early casting reports don't mention Jackson. But if this really is Tarantino's last film, you'd think he'd have something special for the actor he's worked with most often.
SIGOURNEY WEAVER
Nominations: 3
Could have won for: “Aliens” (1986)
We know she will be in (gasp) three more “Avatar” movies. That won't be her ticket to her Oscar. And the two horror titles she has on the horizon won't be either, although they both sound like a lot of fun. What would you rather be? An icon or an Oscar winner?
MICHELLE WILLIAMS
Nominations: 5
Could have won for: “Brokeback Mountain” (2005), “The Fabelmans” (2022)
Would Williams be on this list if she had campaigned to be a supporting actress in “The Fabelmans”? She stars in about a third of the film, about half the screen time of each of the other four women nominated for lead actress last year. But Williams made that choice and ended up earning a lead nomination for her nuanced portrayal of a woman trying to balance her artistic impulses with that of being a wife and mother. If she had gone to support, she probably would have lost anyway to the avalanche of “Everything, everywhere, at once.” You can bet she'll be back one day.
