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The Oscar nominations 2026 were revealed last week, and overall, I think the Academy did a pretty excellent job of recognizing the movies over the past 12 months that most deserve their flowers. But that certainly hasn’t always been the case. Trust me, over the last (almost) century, the Oscars have a streak of making some bizarre snubs and ludicrous omissions.
I’m not just talking about masterpieces that didn't win an Oscar, or that failed to make the cut in the Best Picture category, either. I’m talking about legendary and critically acclaimed movies that didn’t receive a single Oscar nomination. Not even in one of the technical categories. I consider these frankly bizarre awards snubs a crime against cinema.
‘The Good, The Bad and The Ugly’ (1966)
The final chapter of the “Dollar Trilogy,” a financial success and starring the already iconic Clint Eastwood, “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,” isn’t just a celebrated western epic; it’s pretty much the genre pick. Heck, even just its name has entered the public vernacular, and images of Eastwood’s leading character adorn everything from t-shirts to college dorm room posters even now. How it didn’t get a single nomination, I don’t know.
Set during the Civil War, a wandering stranger (Clint Eastwood) and an outlaw (Eli Wallach) form an unlikely partnership to scam local towns out of bounty money. However, the stranger eventually grows tired of his arrangement. But the at-odds duo must set aside their differences and work together again when they catch wind of a $20,000 score buried in a remote cemetery. However, a sadistic criminal is also after the treasure.
Watch "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" on Prime Video now
‘Shutter Island’ (2010)
A movie directed by Martin Scorsese not getting a single Oscar nomination feels almost unthinkable, and yet that’s exactly what happened with 2010’s “Shutter Island.” Perhaps the Academy felt this psychological thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio was a little too bleak. Then again, the 83rd Academy Awards (in)famously saw the pompous period drama, “The King’s Speech,” beat out the defining movie of the decade, “The Social Network.” So those Oscars were kind of a hot mess in general; “Shutter Island" being excluded seems par for the course in that year.
Set in 1954, “Shutter Island” follows a U.S. Marshall, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio), who arrives with his partner Chuck (Mark Ruffalo) at an institute for the criminally insane on the titular island. Their job is to investigate the disappearance of a patient, who vanished in the middle of the night. But the duo soon suspects that everything is not what it seems and that the lead psychiatrist, Dr. John Cawley (Ben Kingsley), is hiding dark secrets.
Watch "Shutter Island" on Fubo now
‘Before Sunrise’ (1995)
Maybe the Oscars should add a retrospective award for the best movie trilogy, because Richard Linklater’s “Before” series would certainly be worthy of such an honor. And with a rare 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, you’d have to search pretty far to find a critic who dislikes "Before Sunrise," the masterfully written first installment in this romantic drama trilogy. It centers on a simple premise: two strangers meet and connect over a single night, and it gives viewers one of the most compelling couplings in movie history, Celine (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke).
Traveling across Europe, American Jesse meets Celine, a European student on her way to Paris, on a train from Budapest. Sparks fly almost immediately, and they agree to spend the day together wandering around picturesque Vienna. Without money to rent a room, they opt instead to just walk all night, discussing their lives, outlooks and hopes for the future. But with the clock ticking, their romantic connection can’t last forever.
Watch "Before Sunrise" on Prime Video (buy/rent) now
‘The Terminator’ (1984)
James Cameron is another Academy favorite. His 1997 epic “Titanic” matched the (at-the-time) record for most Oscar nominations by a single movie, and won 11, including Best Picture. However, his ‘80s action classic “The Terminator” didn’t receive the same attention.
Debates rage on to determine whether its follow-up, “T2: Judgement Day”, is the superior movie, but that only speaks to the high quality of both movies. Let’s not talk about the subsequent sequels, though, which range from passable popcorn entertainment to painfully bad.
This supremely influential sci-fi action movie sees a cyborg assassin (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) travel from a dystopian future to 1980’s Los Angeles. His mission is to kill the seemingly ordinary Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), but she’s got her own time-traveling protector in the form of Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn). Reese reveals to Sarah that in the future, a sentient A.I. system known as Skynet will start a nuclear war, and her unborn son, John Connor, will lead humanity’s resistance.
Watch "The Terminator" on Netflix now
‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ (2019)
Last September, I ranked “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” as one of the greatest movies of the past decade, so it’s no surprise that I’m particularly outraged about its lack of Oscar nominations. It wasn’t even considered in the Best International Feature Film category, as the thriller “Les Misérables” (no, not the musical) was put forward as France’s submission. That’s a miscarriage of movie justice if I’ve ever seen one because “Portrait” is one of the most romantic movies of the 21st century. Scratch that. It’s among the most romantic movies of all time.
Set in 18th-century France, Marianne (Noémie Merlant) is a painter commissioned to create a wedding portrait for a reluctant Héloïse (Adèle Haenel), the young daughter of a powerful Countess (Valeria Golino), who is set to marry a Milanese nobleman. Due to Héloïse’s aversion to the impending marriage, Marianne must paint her in secret at night and merely observe by day. As the two become closer, a passionate but fleeting affair begins despite the prejudices of the time.
Watch "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" on HBO Max now
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