Snoop From ‘Anatomy of A Fall’ Joins A Long List Of Animal Actors Cruelly Snubbed By The Oscars

Let’s be honest, the 2024 “Oscar snub” conversation got ugly, real quick. The still-fresh memories of #OscarsSoWhite came rushing back when the exciting number of nominations for people of color – many of which were all-time firsts – were largely ignored in defense of two white women who have their fair-share of recognition from the Academy. But this – the Venn diagram between Oscar snubs and overpowering white feminism – is nothing new… it’s just gotten more progressively worse over the years.

All said, I would like to bring a new Oscar snub into the conversation, one who is likely to never, ever get a nomination despite their sublime performance in a phenomenal movie. Enter Messi, the canine actor responsible for portraying Snoop, the guide dog in Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall.

Messi has been all the hype lately and even em-bark-ed on a campaign trail of his own when movie distributor Neon sent around an email to media professionals advertising a press day with the movie’s “best supporting canine,” as shared by reporter Will Mavity.

Director-writer Triet, who won Best Screenplay and Best Picture (Non-English Language) at the 2024 Golden Globes, even gave Messi a shout-out in her acceptance speech, saying, “Thank you to Snoop for being yourself, just a dog.”

But Messi is so much more than “just a dog.” In fact, Messi has become the internet’s latest obsession with fans circulating video edits of the canine’s standout moments in the film, one of which has received over 1.7K likes on Twitter and is set to Mitski’s hit emotional ballad “My Love Mine All Mine,” emphasizing Messi’s moving impact on viewers. 

snoop anatomy of a fall you are sooo lovedpic.twitter.com/i31PVv8YVy

— ًraj (@legorajs) January 24, 2024

In light of the recent Oscar nominations, many have voiced their upset over Messi’s snub, sharing messages such as, “excuse me but where is Messi’s Best Supporting Actor nom for playing le chien Snoop in Anatomy of a Fall” and “the scene stealer in Anatomy of a Fall is Snoop the dog who delivers easily the best animal performance of all time… he pulled off a scene so unbelievable that it left me questioning the limits of canine talent… the movie is worth watching for that one scene alone.”

Messi is but one of a number of animals that turned in memorable performances this year — you might go as far as to say that the competition for which animal turned in the best performance is ruff. A Twitter user pointed out that Eli, the owl in Killers of the Flower Moon, could give Snoop a serious run for his money. And remember, just last year, the Academy cruelly snubbed the titular donkey from the 2022 drama EO, who joined the ranks of Bart The Bear (The Edge) and the trio of tabbies from Inside Llewyn Davis as non-human performers that elevated their respective movies into the realm of art. The time is now to make amends, my fine furry friends!

All jokes aside, Messi is actually and truly a pivotal character in Anatomy of a Fall, which follows German writer Sandra (Sandra Hüller) in the wake of the death of her husband Samuel (Samuel Theis). Snoop is the one to discover Daniel’s dead body while on a snowy walk with the couple’s 11-year-old son Daniel (Milo Machado Graner), who is blind. As the movie continues, Snoop serves as emotional support for Daniel and his mother as an investigation into Samuel’s death commences, which sees Sandra on trial for murder.

Recognizing the importance of Messi’s role beyond the Golden Globes shout-out, Triet told The Hollywood Reporter that Snoop is “not just another character or some animal running around… in many ways, he represents this dead person, this absent person.” The filmmaker praised even Messi’s professionalism on set, saying it “… it’s often not easy to work with animals. But we had good luck this time to work with someone in the business, who trains animals for the industry.”

With a 2023 Palm Dog award from Cannes already in Messi’s belt, it’s clear this canine has left an impact on moviegoers and deserves much more recognition than the current awards circuit is equipped to give. Bark bark, my dear pup.