By Kenzie Smith, Arts & Entertainment Editor
In the world of film, the Oscars are one of the highest honors. With the nominee announcement on Jan. 23, it was no surprise that blockbuster movies like “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” made the list.
“Oppenheimer” was nominated for thirteen awards, while Barbie received eight nominations. Even with “Barbie” getting nominated for awards such as Best Motion Picture of the Year, Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress with America Ferrera, there was still an uproar on social media about Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie not receiving nominations for Achievement in Directing and Best Lead Actress, respectively. This response was likely coupled by Ryan Gosling receiving a nomination for Best Supporting Actor, as well as the song “I’m Just Ken” winning best song at the Critics Choice Awards on Jan. 14 and beating both “Dance the Night” and “What Was I Made For,” also from “Barbie.”
Fans of “Barbie” instantly came to social media platforms, such as TikTok, to express their disappointment and frustration. Clips of Gosling’s reaction to “I’m Just Ken” winning best song started to circulate, and people pointed out how he looked shocked, confused and even side-eyed the camera. Many people said that “I’m Just Ken” winning this award perpetuated the patriarchal standards that “Barbie” was trying to push against. Then less than two weeks later, these same fans were met with the news that Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie had not been nominated for Oscar awards that they were expected to be nominated for.
This disappointment was also expressed by fellow “Barbie” cast members and other public figures.
In Gosling’s statement in response to being nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Gosling conveyed his gratitude at his own nomination but also stated, “But there is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally-celebrated film… To say that I’m disappointed that they are not nominated in their respective categories would be an understatement.”
Ferrera shared a similar sentiment. Although ecstatic due to her own nomination, she shared with Variety that she was “incredibly disappointed” that Gerwig and Robbie were not nominated. It was hard for Ferrera to understand why the two didn’t receive the nominations when “Greta has done just about everything that a director could do to deserve it,” and “[Margot’s] a master [at her craft].” Ferrera even called it “one of the honors of my career” to watch Robbie perform.
Even former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton spoke up. She posted a message to Gerwig and Robbie on X stating, “While it can sting to win the box office but not take home the gold, your millions of fans love you. You’re both so much more than Kenough.”
Clinton found some backlash with this post, however, as people responded criticizing her for refusing to call for a ceasefire in Gaza but being able to speak out about snubbed Oscar nominees. This brought forth a flurry of people calling the concern with the snubbed “Barbie” nominations a white feminism issue, not only for the focus on issues relating to film when compared to genocides but also for the feats that are being overlooked or ignored with the 2024 Oscar Nominations.
Within the “Barbie” nominations, if America Ferrera wins Best Supporting Actress, she will be the third Latina to do so. Gerwig’s “Barbie,” Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” and Celine Song’s “Past Lives” also form a trio of women-directed films that have made it onto the Best Picture list. Progress with the Oscars is also indicated by Triet’s nomination for best director, following a year where this category had no women nominees. Triet is the ninth woman ever to be nominated for Best Director.
Emma Stone has also made notable achievements for women, as she is the second woman to be nominated for both Best Lead Actress and Best Picture, as she also worked as a producer on the film “Poor Things.” Additionally, Thelma Schoonmaker’s nomination for achievement in film editing for “Killers of the Flower Moon” makes her the most nominated film editor ever. If she wins this award, she will become the most awarded editor in history.
“Killers of the Flower Moon” also marks achievements for the Native American community within the Oscars. Star Lily Gladstone marks the first Native American actress to be nominated for Best Lead Actress. Canadian and Native American composer Robbie Robertson was also posthumously nominated for best original score of “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
The Black and Latino communities have also made history with this year’s Oscar nominations. Jeffrey Wright and Sterling K. Brown have been nominated for Best Lead Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, for their work in “American Fiction.” These nominations mark the first time Black actors in the same movie have been nominated for these categories simultaneously. Wright is also the 22nd Black man to be nominated for Best Actor while Brown is the 19th Black man to be nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Afro-Latino star Colman Domingo was nominated for Best Lead Actor for his work in “Rustin,” and he is the first out Black and out Latino actor to receive this nomination. Winning this award would make Domingo the second-ever Latino, the first gay Latino, the sixth Black actor, the second-ever Black gay actor and the second gay actor to do so.
Domingo is not the only actor representing the LGBTQ+ community at the Oscars. Jodie Foster was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her work in “Nyad,” and if she wins, she’ll be the first out actress to win three performance Oscars. Notably, both Domingo and Foster played LGBTQ+ roles in the films they were nominated for. Karen Ryan and Julie Zackary’s “Nimona,” nominated for best feature animation, could also mark a major milestone for the recognition of LGBTQ+ storytelling if it were to win.
Although the fans of “Barbie” may have been massively disappointed with Gerwig and Robbie not being nominated for achievement in directing and best lead actress respectively, there are still many history-making nominations at this year’s Oscars that deserve to be recognized. It can be argued that the Oscars, and Hollywood itself, still have a long way to go to be fully representative and conscious of the hard work put in by underrepresented groups, but ground is being made, and this progress is important.
This article originally appeared on pages 10 to 11 of the February 2024 edition of The Gettysburgian’s magazine.
