10 Oscar-Worthy Performances The Oscars Ignored (In Comedy)
"Dying is easy. Comedy is hard." Unfortunately the Academy doesn't always see it that way. Here are the 10 most brilliant performances that should've been given Oscar gold, but were not because of a long held (and slowly dwindling) bias against the ability to make people laugh.
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1Bill Murray - Groundhog DayBill Murray is one of the greatest comedic performers of all-time and his performance in "Groundhog Day" is arguably his best. This is a comedic performance of the highest caliber with Murray at his acerbic best, but what really sells the performance is the roller coaster of an emotional journey that the performer takes us through. Not only does Murray deliver consistent laughs in whatever state his character is in (irritation, ego-mania, depression, selflessness), but he also pulls at your heart strings because underneath the laughs we see a real human being in a real struggle with heavy themes of existentialism, mortality, suicide, God complexes and proper communication in a romantic relationship, all on his absurd course to genuine enlightenment.
Had he been nominated for Best Actor in 1994 he would have competed against the likes of Daniel Day-Lewis, Laurence Fishburne, Anthony Hopkins, Liam Neeson and Tom Hanks (who won for his first prominent dramatic role as a lovable lawyer dying of AIDS in Philadelphia), so even if Murray had been nominated he probably wouldn't have stood a chance.
Ironically, Murray beat Tom Hanks for the lead in Groundhog Day. Murray has been nominated once since: for his perfect, subtle turn in Lost in Translation. And despite being considered a front runner, lost to Sean Penn... another comedic actor turned deadly serious.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
2Peter Sellers The Pink PantherHere's a little tidbit of information for you: in the original "Pink Panther" movie, the focus was not supposed to be on Peter Seller's Inspector Clouseau, but on David Niven's Sir Charles Lytton. The fact that Sellers is merely a supporting character in the first of a series that was eventually launched around him is a testament to how great he was in this iconic role.
Sellers' deft ability at physical comedy is at full display here, grounded in a fully-realized character creating one of the funniest performances ever put on film.
Ironically, Sellers was indeed nominated in 1965 for a comedic performance, and deservedly so, as Best Actor for Dr. Strangelove, so we're willing to give the Academy the benefit of the doubt and assume that he may have split his own vote.
Had he been nominated for Best Supporting Actor in 1965, he would have competed against the likes of John Gielgud, Stanley Holloway, Edmund O'Brien, Lee Tracy and Peter Ustinov (who won his second Academy Award for Topkapi), and if we had our way, #6 on our list. Sellers was nominated twice for Best Actor, and once for Best Live Action Short Subject ("The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film"), but never won.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
3Jim Carrey - Man On the MoonOh Jim Carrey, if only you hadn't launched your career by talking out of your ass, things might have been different. How different? Well, at the very least, he would have had at least one Oscar nomination to his name; namely for his terrific, spot-on turn as Andy Kaufman in "Man on the Moon."
If ever there was a role you could point to that Carrey "lost himself in," this performance here would be it. Normally it's enough for a popular actor to redefine himself (see: Jaime Foxx in "Ray," having graduated from the likes of "Booty Call"), but if it makes us laugh, then forget about it.
Despite a ridiculous lack of resemblance to the famous comedian, Milos Forman cast Carrey over such contenders as Ed Norton and Kevin Spacey. Carrey was also snubbed for "The Truman Show," but the fact that this performance was overlooked a year later makes the insult sting all the more palpable.
The role would net Carrey a Golden Globe, a SAG nomination and a number of critics' awards, but the Academy, who usually has a hard-on for bio-pics, decided to be the lone holdout and deny the comedian his rightful laurels.
Had he been nominated for Best Actor in 2000, he would have competed against the likes of Russel Crowe, Richard Farnsworth, Sean Penn, Denzel Washington and Kevin Spacey, who lost the role to Jim Carrey, but won the Oscar for American Beauty instead. Carrey remains unnominated.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
4Eddie Murphy - The Nutty ProfessorLike him or hate him, it's hard to deny the talent of Eddie Murphy, at least when he actually tries (see: the '80s and early '90s but none of the '00s, except maybe for Dreamgirls). Well, in "The Nutty Professor" Eddie Murphy demonstrated once and for all just how talented he is.
His work as Sherman Klump, Buddy Love, and the entire Klump family is a milestone for comedic performances and shows more range than your typical "man overcoming great obstacles, crying and then dying" movies that the Academy loves. And unlike his performances as multiple characters before or since, each role was fully realized and complimented the others. Sherman's good heart and crippling low self-esteem was the antithesis of Buddy Love's unbridled id, and his family's complete acceptance of their own flaws placed Sherman's own ego in proper context.
Had he been nominated for Best Actor in 1997, he would have competed against the likes of Tom Cruise, Ralph Fiennes, Woody Harrelson, Billy Bob Thornton and Geoffrey Rush (who won for his role in Shine). Murphy finally earned his one and only nomination for Dreamgirls, in which he played a drug-addicted entertainment icon rapidly falling from grace. You know... Oscar bait. It has been widely suggested that he only lost because his shameless performance in Norbit cast a pall on his more "respectable" work in Dreamgirls. He remains unrewarded by the Academy.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
5John Goodman - The Big LebowskiNow before you cry foul that this isn't for "The Dude," hear us out... Jeff Bridges has been nominated five times (including this year, for which he's expected to finally win), but John Goodman, one of the best character actors out there has never been invited to the show. For this, Goodman's most iconic performance, he certainly should have been.
Overbearing and deeply flawed, had he been nominated for Best Supporting Actor in 1999 he would have competed against the likes of Robert Duvall, Ed Harris, Geoffrey Rush (in a somewhat less-deserving comedic role), Billy Bob Thornton, and James Coburn (who won his first Academy Award, from his first nomination, for Affliction). Goodman remains unnominated.
To make our point, and because we can't resist, we're simply going to throw down some of Walter's best quotes, made all the sweeter by Goodman's perfect delivery:
"You want a toe? I can get you a toe, believe me. There are ways, Dude. You don't wanna know about it, believe me."
"I told those fucks down at the league office a thousand times that I don't roll on Shabbos!"
"This is what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass!"
And, of course..."Shut the fuck up, Donny."date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
6George C. Scott - Dr. StrangeloveThankfully, the Academy did right and nominated Peter Sellers for this one (we still can't believe he lost), but what about George C. Scott?
Stepping out of his dramatic comfort zone, Scott goes toe to toe with one of the greatest comedic actors ever and nearly steals the show from him as General Buck Turgidson, whose infectious redneck patriotism ironically overpowers the seriousness of his situation. If this didn't display the true greatness and versatility that was George C. Scott, we don't know what did.
Had he been nominated for Best Supporting Actor in 1965 (as we feel he should have been), he would have competed against the likes of John Gielgud, Stanley Holloway, Edmund O'Brien, Lee Tracy and Peter Ustinov (who won his second Academy Award for Topkapi), and if we had our way, #2 on our list. Frankly, Scott would have stood a good chance of winning. Don't shed too many tears, though, as by the end of his storied career he'd racked up three nominations and one win for his iconic starring role in Patton, which he refused to accept because he didn't believe acting should be competitive. What a class act!date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
7Nicole Kidman To Die ForBy 1995 Nicole Kidman (despite a series of respectable performances in films like Dead Calm, Billy Bathgate, and Malice) was still probably best known for marrying Tom Cruise. That all started to change with her magnetic performance as Suzanne Stone Maretto in Gus Van Sant's To Die For; an oily black comedy based on the real life case of Pamela Smart, who convinced her 15-year-old lover to murder her husband.
Despite the real-life tragedy, in Kidman's hands the dazzling beauty is a hilarious combination of ditzy blonde, naive charmer, and sadistic egomaniac as she destroys the lives of anyone and everyone who loves her if she isn't constantly the center of attention. Suzanne's sociopathic tendencies are offset by Kidman's brilliant readings of lines like, "You know Mr. Gorbachev, the guy that ran Russia for so long? I am a firm believer that he would still be in power today if he had had that ugly purple thing taken off his head."
Had she been nominated in 1996 for Best Actress, she would have competed against the likes of Elizabeth Shue, Sharon Stone, Meryl Streep, Emma Thompson, and Susan Sarandon (who won the Award for Dead Man Walking), an unusually competitive year for the category. Kidman is the only actor on our list to go on to actually win an Academy Award, seven years later, for portraying Virginia Woolf in The Hours.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
8Jerry Lewis - The King of ComedyOf all the De Niro/Scorsese collaborations, this is the one that has been largely forgotten and it's a shame, because it also happened to feature the finest performance from comedy legend Jerry Lewis as the kidnapped talk show host Jerry Langford.
For the role, Lewis, the king of shtick, completely reigned himself in and gave a totally grounded, real performance as the object of his stalker's desire - even during fantasy sequences, which other actors might have used as an excuse to let 'er rip. He was as every bit as funny as he'd ever been.
Had he been nominated for Best Supporting Actor in 1984, as he was at the BAFTAs, he would have competed against the likes of Charles Durning, John Lithgow, Sam Shepard, Rip Torn and Jack Nicholson (who won his second Academy Award for Terms of Endearment). As it was, Jerry Lewis was never nominated for a competitive Oscar, and it's a crying shame.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
9Johnny Depp - Ed WoodJohnny Depp, the King of Weird, spent the large part of his early career giving terrifically off-kilter performances that the Academy thought best to ignore until his turn in "Pirates of the Caribbean" defied all expectations of both the actor and blockbuster performances as a whole.
However, it's his work as the title character in "Ed Wood" that ranks as his best. For any other actor, the wide-eyed naivete on display here could have easily flown off the rails but, like the best of Depp's work, he infuses the weirdness of his portrayal with a genuine heart that makes watching him here a truely unique experience. Depp modeled Wood's "Gee Whiz" optimism on Ronald Reagan, his heartfelt enthusiasm on The Tin Man, and the rest of it on Casey Kasem, an ingenious mixture which infused Hollywood's most famous failure with enough likable qualities to keep him a winner in spirit. Oh, and he's funny as hell too.
Had he been nominated for Best Actor in 1995, he would have competed against the likes of Morgan Freeman, Nigel Hawthorne, Paul Newman, John Travolta, and Tom Hanks (who won his second Academy Award for Forrest Gump). Tough year. He's been nominated three times since yet remains an underdog, with zero wins.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender -
10Amy Adams - EnchantedAmy Adams is a terrific young actress with a number of really good performances already under her belt. But her best may be her incredibly funny and surprisingly nuanced work in the Disney film, "Enchanted," in which she plays a stereotypical Disney princess who steps into the real world, imbuing a cynical realm with infectious optimism, while having her own naive assumptions challenged at every turn.
Adams could have coasted to a nomination on charm (Julia Roberts sure did for Pretty Woman), but watch as her exceptional physicality slowly shifts from a walking cartoon to a fully-formed character, subtlety matching her grace, and you'll realize that this is a young master at work.
Had she been nominated for Best Actress in 2008, she would have competed against the likes of Cate Blanchett, Julie Christie, Ellen Page (in a deserving-yet-actually-recognized comedic performance), Laura Linney, and Marion Cotillard, who won for her performance in La Vie en Rose. She's been nominated once before and once since, and we think we'll see her up there again, with an actual award in her hands, real soon.date_of_birth film place_of_birth nationality children parents Date Born height_meters weight_kg gender
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