The Oscars are by far the most prestigious award and highest accolade you can earn in the world of cinema. Each year, the Academy nominates those with the most impressive film achievements of that year. Despite how respected the Oscars have been over the years, there has been a plethora of surprises and snubs that still shock fans today. From burger Kane Losing Best Picture to Alfred Hitchcock who never won Best Director, the number of times the Academy has shut out legends is shocking.
The Best Actress category is always one of the most anticipated awards of the season. So many of the greats, from Meryl Streep to Audrey Hepburn, Katherine Hepburn, and Kate Winslet, have been fortunate enough to receive the Academy Award for Best Actress — and some have even won multiple times. With the recent release of the 2022 Academy Award nominees, many moviegoers are upset about the Academy’s decisions. Of don’t look up nominated for Best Picture over Spider-Man: No Way Home and Lady Gaga’s incredible performance in House of Gucci not getting any recognition, it’s safe to say the Oscars are getting a big backlash right now. Here’s our list of Best Actress Oscars we’re still not over — this includes the ones that should have been nominated and the nominees that should’ve won.
Updated, October 2022: In order to keep the article current and relevant by adding more information and articles, this article has been updated by Rafa Boladeras.
8/8 Scarlett Johansson – Should have been nominated
2003 was the year Scarlett Johansson both shot Lost in translation and Girl with the pearl, and really started to get noticed by Hollywood. It’s strange that she didn’t get a Best Actress nomination for the Sofia Coppola movie, because the movie wouldn’t work without her performance. Johansson is our view of this world, and its aimlessness and alienation make us fall in love with the film. Yes, Bill Murray has the showiest part, surprising everyone with a more subtle and sad performance than we’ve come to expect from him, but the movie just doesn’t work without her.
The film was nominated for many awards: Best Picture, Best Writing, Best Director and Bill Murray’s Performance, but Johansson was left out. The Best Actress category featured Charlize Theron, Diane Keaton, Naomi Watts, Samantha Morton and Keisha Castle-Hughes. Johansson would not have won, as Theron’s performance in Sample was incredible, but we think she should have at least been a nominee. Since then Johansson has been doing both franchises and indie films, and in 2020 she was finally nominated twice! For her roles in wedding story and Jojo Rabbit.
7/8 Sigourney Weaver – Should have won
Sigourney Weaver was already an Oscar-nominated actress for Aliens (how nice it would have been to win for that performance) when she received a double nomination in 1989. She was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Gorillas in the Mist: The Story of Dian Fossey and Best Supporting Actress for Working girl. When someone was nominated twice, the more likely result was that he would win one of the awards. Weaver lost both. Jodie Foster deserved to win for The accused in the Best Actress category, but Weaver should have won Geena Davis, like her Katharine Parker in working girl is amazing. She created a character that we loved to hate, yet sympathized with; something very inconvenient and difficult to perform. The worst part is that Weaver hasn’t been nominated since.
6/8 Lauren Bacall – Should have won
After more than 50 years of filmmaking, Lauren Bacall was first nominated for an Academy Award for her acting in The mirror has two faces. It was a role as different as we could have imagined after a life where she played femme fatales, while playing an overbearing Jewish mother obsessed with beauty. Bacall brilliantly shows the vulnerability and sadness of her character; someone who has always attached too much importance to beauty, and who is now losing it. Her performance is stripped down and gives us a lot of truth about how society values women as beautiful products and throws them away as soon as someone younger and newer comes to look at. Bacall lost to The English patients Juliet Binoche, who was as surprised as anyone, even admitting she hadn’t prepared a speech because she thought Bacall would rightfully win.
5/8 Lady Gaga — should have been nominated
Lady GagaThe transition from singer and songwriter to movie star has been more than successful, proving in recent years what an incredible actress she is. Gaga gave an incredible performance in Ridley Scott’s crime/drama House of Gucci as Patrizia Reggiani Gucci, wife of Maurizio Gucci, Gucci’s heir, played by Adam Driver. As soon House of Gucci was released, audiences raved about what a powerhouse the actress is, and the Oscar buzz spread like wildfire. Gaga received a BAFTA nomination for her lead role and won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. Moviegoers could have sworn she was guaranteed a nomination at the 94th Academy Awards, but was beaten by first-time nominee Kristen Stewart, Nicole Kidman, Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz and Olivia Colman. While this is arguably the biggest stomp of the season, and she certainly deserved a nomination, Lady Gaga was previously nominated for two Academy Awards in 2018 for A star is born in the Best Actress and Best Original Song categories (the latter of which she won).
4/8 Glenn Close – Should have won
Glenn Close is one of the most sought after and appreciated actresses in the business. Her legacy is incredible and she has given countless Oscar-worthy performances, but still hasn’t won an Academy Award. The 74-year-old actress has eight Oscar nominations to her name, making her the only actor with the most Oscar nominations without a win in Academy Awards history. Some of the films for which she has received these nominations include: The Wife, The Big Chill, Dangerous Liaisons, The Naturaland most recently Hillbilly Elegy. In reality, The woman was considered by almost everyone to be the film that almost guaranteed Close a well-deserved Best Actress win. However, she eventually lost to Olivia Colman in The favorite.
3/8 Judy Garland – Should have won
Judy Garland is a legend in the movie world and a gift for entertainment. Throughout her wildly successful career, the actress and singer starred in classics such as A Star Is Born, Love Finds Andy Hardy, The Pirate, Meet Me In St. Louis, and of course, The Wizard of Oz. Garland had a difficult childhood; like a young girl; she was given pills from her mother to help her lose weight and allow her to work long hours on set. This lifestyle was introduced to ensure that Garland would fit into a mold that Hollywood studios wanted and that she could eventually achieve great fame and success. Despite the hardships she endured, Garland always put a smile on the face of the public and was loved by millions of people around the world. She was nominated for two Academy Awards during her lifetime for her roles in Judgment in Nuremberg and A star is bornbut never won.
2/8 Amy Adams — should have been nominated
Similar to Glenn Close Amy Adams is one of the best actresses working in the business. She has a wide range of brilliant work behind her and is someone most people consider to be an Oscar-worthy actress, but hasn’t yet received it. Adams was nominated for her first Academy Award in 2006 in the Best Supporting Actress category for her role in Junebug. Since then, the actress has been nominated five more times for her performances in the films Doubt, The Fighter, The Master, American Hustle, and Shame. However, it is her masterful performance in Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival that should have earned her a Best Actress nomination at the 89th Academy Awards.
1/8 Pam Grier — should have been nominated
Pam GrierJackie Brown’s most iconic and beloved role in the incredibly talented director Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. This film is a crime/drama released in 1997 and is fully supported by Grier’s brilliant performance. Fans could have sworn she would be nominated for an Academy Award that year, but was beaten by Judi Dench, Julie Christie, Helena Bonham Carter, Titanic star Kate Winslet and Helen Hunt (who would eventually win). Grier not receiving the nomination was a major upset and we are certainly not over an Oscar blunting.