Bradley Cooper and other iconic decades-long Oscar snubs

Many of the most-snubbed stars have been nominated over and over without ever taking home a trophy.

During Oscars season, certain names – hello again, Scorsese – are almost predictably in the mix year after year. But while it's an honour just to be nominated, some of the biggest stars in Hollywood, who have many notable projects under their belts, also have long histories of being relentlessly overlooked when it comes to actually taking home the trophy. And other artists have had notably long dry runs before their name is finally called on the big night.

Nominations are, of course, chosen by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and you must be nominated to join this exclusive club. In 2019, there were around 9,000 members, and today there are about 10,500. Members vote in the categories of their own profession – so actors vote for actors, editors vote for editors – and each voter makes 10 selections in the appropriate category. Once the shortlist of nominations is formed, Academy members vote for the winner across all categories. For those outside of the Academy, it's impossible to know exactly how the decisions are made, especially the shocking snubs.

Last night, Bradley Cooper cemented his spot on the list. The triple-threat actor, writer and director who has been nominated 12 times – four for best actor – yet never snagged a trophy, couldn't break his snub-streak. While Cooper earned three nominations for his film Maestro – best picture, best actor, best original screenplay – he went home empty-handed. And he's far from the only artist who has been the victim of Academy Award snubs.

One star who has been snubbed over and over is Amy Adams. Having been nominated six times (Junebug, Doubt, The Fighter, The Master, Vice and American Hustle) over the course of her career it's inarguable how massive a talent she is. But somehow, she's always been passed over on the big day. While Adams received rave reviews for her recent role in Arrival, it didn’t earn her a nomination from the Academy.

While Meryl Streep has a handful of golden statues, she's also had a long history of being relentlessly snubbed. With 21 Oscar nominations to her name, some believe she should have far more wins – such as for her raved about roles in The Manchurian Candidate, The Hours or Death Becomes Her. Still, Streep is in a small club of women who have been awarded the best actress statue three times, so while the odds don't seem in her favour, she's not likely to complain. It's been six years since Streep has received an Oscar nomination, for her role in The Post, marking the longest period she's gone without since 1978's The Deer Hunter.

Also on the snub list is 49-year-old actor Leonardo DiCaprio, an actor who has had an incredibly successful career. While high-earning films like Titanic catapulted him to mega stardom, his Academy Award nominations started much earlier. He was nominated for best supporting actor for his role in 1993's What's Eating Gilbert Grape, a nod that kicked off a lengthy snub streak. The actor was later nominated for The Aviator, Blood Diamond and The Wolf of Wall Street, but didn't take home a trophy until his role as Hugh Glass in 2016's The Revenant. DiCaprio was nominated again for 2019's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but went home without an Oscar.

Somewhat astonishingly, Glenn Close has never won an Oscar, but has more nominations without a win than any actor in history. She's had eight nods for her roles in The World According to Garp, The Big Chill, The Natural and Hillbilly Elegy, as well as Fatal Attraction, among others. But while the star has never taken home an Oscar, she's said it doesn't bother her. "First of all, I don't think I'm a loser," she told the Associated Press of her snub streak in 2021. “Who in that category is a loser? You're there, you're five people honoured for the work that you've done by your peers. What's better than that?"

It's not just actors who get snubbed – some of the most successful directors have run through surprising Oscars losing streaks. Martin Scorsese directed legendary films like Taxi Driver, GoodFellas and The Aviator, all of which were snubbed at the Oscars. In fact, while the director has been making films since the '70s and has achieved a whopping 16 nominations, he's only ever received one Academy Award: for 2006's The Departed. Scorsese has also earned more Oscar nominations for best director than anyone alive, surpassing Steven Spielberg's nine. This year, Scorcese was passed over once again for his work on Killers of the Flower Moon, which was nominated for best picture, but lost to Oppenheimer. Fans have theorised the Academy overlooks the director's work because it deals with more diverse narratives and often features languages other than English.

A historic lack of recognition for actors of colour makes some snubs less surprising than others. Still, it's fairly stunning that Samuel L Jackson – whose body of work has one of the highest total box office gross of all time, at over £21bn ($27bn) – has only ever been nominated for one Academy Award, 1995's Pulp Fiction. The actor has spoken openly about his snubs, too. In a 2023 interview with Vulture, he shared his feelings that a nomination for A Time To Kill was stolen from him due to the way the film was edited. 

Even though the actor has delivered dozens of memorable performances and snagged six People's Choice Awards, the 73-year-old has never won an Oscar. In 2022, recognising that Jackson had somehow been overlooked during his decades-long career, the Academy gave him an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement at the Governors Awards, which was presented by Denzel Washington.

Angela Bassett, another accomplished Black actor – who was nominated for her role as Tina Turner in What's Love Got To Do With It, and for her role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – was snubbed both times. While in 2023, she made history as the first actor to earn an Oscar nomination for a Marvel film as Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, she lost the award to Jamie Lee Curtis. In January 2024, Bassett was awarded an honourary Oscar.

Of course, there are many dynamics involved in who gets nominated and who wins. And those dynamics are ever-shifting, thanks to efforts towards diversity at the awards. Y-Vonne Hutchinson, founder and CEO of The Ready Set, a consulting and strategy firm that works with entertainment organisations and clients to help improve their efforts towards inclusivity, says that while there has been progress at the Oscars in recent years, it's not enough. When it comes to actors of colour, snubs aren't just a result of who the Academy deems worthy, but also a result of who is being given opportunities for work. 

"There's been some progress, but still a feeling that there's a limit to what that progress is," she tells BBC Culture. She says that for actors of colour, opportunities also come with added pressure. "I know that actors and creators still have this fear that they get one shot, that even though there's been improvement there's a scarcity" of roles and opportunities. 

Perhaps one prime example of that is Lily Gladstone losing to Emma Stone for best actress on Sunday. “While Emma Stone is really beloved, there were a lot of people rooting for Lily Gladstone to be recognised,” Angela Andaloro, a culture critic at People Magazine tells BBC Culture. 

"Stone", Andaloro explains, "while clearly grateful for the honour and gracious to mention the other nominated actresses in her acceptance, will almost certainly have other opportunities – and that didn't hinge on the outcome of last night's ceremony."

"A win for Lily", on the other hand, who was the first Native American woman to have ever been nominated in an acting category, would have been really poignant and opened the possibility for more of that representation," Andaloro concludes.

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