And the Oscar has not gone to...

Top Stories

And the Oscar has not gone to...

History may be written by the victors, but the world remembers these actors and filmmakers who never won - despite giving us tour de force films and performances!

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Thu 4 Feb 2016, 11:00 PM

Last updated: Fri 5 Feb 2016, 9:28 AM

Johnny Depp
He's an A-list movie legend known for his quirky roles and chameleon ability to switch between genres, and the audience's darling. Depp's performances in Edward Scissorhands and Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas are etched in our minds, but strangely the Academy didn't even nominate him those years. Nominated for 2004: Pirates of the Caribbean; lost to Sean Penn, Mystic River 2005: Finding Neverland; lost to Jamie Foxx, Ray 2008: Sweeney Todd; lost to Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood.
Leonardo DiCaprio
At 41, he's still young and might just prove us wrong by scooping up the statuette this year for his survival instinct in The Revenant, but it beats us why this talented child actor-turned-Scorsese favourite and one of the most prolific actors of his generation hasn't won an Oscar yet. Nominated for 1994: What's Eating Gilbert Grape; lost to Tommy Lee Jones, The Fugitive; 2005: The Aviator; lost to Jamie Foxx, Ray; 2007: Blood Diamond; lost to Forest Whitaker, Last King of Scotland; 2014: The Wolf of Wall Street; lost to Matthew McConaughey, The Dallas Buyers Club.
Glenn Close
Just baffling. She's nothing short of a Meryl Streep, has a record six nominations, yet the Academy chose names like Cher and Peggy Ashcroft over Close. Go figure. Nominated for 1983: The World According to Garp; lost to Jessica Lange, Tootsie; 1984: The Big Chill; lost to Linda Hunt, The Year of Living Dangerously; 1985: The Natural: lost to Peggy Ashcroft, A Passage to India; 1988: Fatal Attraction; lost to Cher, Moonstruck; 1989: Dangerous Liaisons; lost to Jodie Foster, The Accused; 2012: Albert Nobbs; lost to Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady.
 Amy Adams
The other 41-year-old in the league, Adams is not quite A-list but a talented artist, and no less than an Anne Hathaway and with five nominations under her belt, plus a thriving career, she might just be able to deliver her Oscar winner speech one day. Nominated for 2006: Junebug; lost to Rachel Weisz, The Constant Gardener. 2009: Doubt; lost to Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona. 2011: The Fighter; lost to Melissa Leo, The Fighter. 2013: The Master; lost to Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables. 2014: American Hustle; lost to Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine.
Edward Norton
One of the most underrated and mercurial actors in this list, but also undoubtedly among the best actors of all time, it's perhaps Norton's low profile that prevents him from getting the 'movie star' tag, and why he's overlooked by Academy voters. Plus, he's not doing enough films to show off that massive scene-lifting quality he brings to the screen. Nominated for 1997: Primal Fear; lost to Cuba Gooding Jr., Jerry Maguire. 1998: American History X; lost to Roberto Benigni, Life is Beautiful. 2014: Birdman; lost to JK Simmons, Whiplash.
Annette Bening
Another lady whose career best is likely behind her, she's got a whopping four nominations spanning decades. She's lost Best Actress to Hilary Swank twice. But Bening's still got projects, so we're rooting for this loveable actress who made American Beauty and Being Julia so memorable. Nominated for 1990: Grifters; lost to Whoopi Goldberg, Ghost. 1999: American Beauty; lost to Hilary Swank, Boys Don't Cry. 2004: Being Julia; lost to Hilary Swank, Million Dollar Baby. 2010: The Kids Are All Right; lost to Natalie Portman, Black Swan. 
Alfred Hitchcock
This will convince you the world does not make sense. One of the greatest filmmakers, his work will be cherished for all time, but was ignored by his own peers. Case in point: do you remember Psycho or The Apartment better? Nominated for 1940: Rebecca; lost to John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath (even though Rebecca won best film). 1944: Lifeboat; lost to Leo McCarey, Going My Way. 1945: Spellbound; lost Billy Wilder The Lost Weekend. 1954: Rear Window; lost to Elia Kazan, On The Waterfront. 1960: Psycho; lost to Billy Wilder, The Apartment. 
Stanley Kubrick
Another filmmaker who left the world of cinema some of its greatest, pathbreaking, controversial and cult films, the New Wave director was snubbed by the Academy even after four nominations. It didn't help that the films he was competing against were mostly huge box office successes. Nominated for 1964: Dr. Strangelove; lost to George Cukor, My Fair Lady. 1968: 2001: A Space Odyssey; lost to Carol Read, Oliver. 1971: A Clockwork Orange; lost to William Friedkin, The French Connection. 1975: Barry Lyndon; lost to Milos Forman, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. 
Brad Pitt
The most dashing actor in recent times may not quite match up to Depp or DiCaprio's acting chops (though he fairly held his own against Norton in Fight Club), but he's been nominated three times, and strangely overlooked by the Academy for stellar turns in Inglorious Basterds and Tree of Life. Nominated for 1995: 12 Monkeys; lost to Kevin Spacey, The Usual Suspects. 2008: The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button; lost to Sean Penn, Milk. 2011: Moneyball; lost to Jean Dujardin, The Artist.
Peter O'Toole
The legendary, late Peter O'Toole holds the infamous record of having the most Oscar acting nomations... without a win. Nominated for 1962: Lawrence of Arabia; lost to Gregory Peck, To Kill A Mockingbird. 1964: Beckett; lost to Rex Harrison, My Fair Lady. 1968: The Lion In Winter; lost to Cliff Robertson, Charly. 1969: Goodbye, Mr. Chips; lost to John Wayne, True Grit. 1972: The Ruling Class; lost to Marlon Brando, The Godfather. 1980: The Stuntman; lost to Robert De Niro, Raging Bull. 1982: My Favorite Year; lost to Ben Kingsley, Gandhi. 2006: Venus; lost to Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scoltand. 


More news from