Biggest Snubs at the 98th Academy Awards
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
This morning, the nominees for the 98th Academy Awards were announced. There is much to celebrate with the final nominations before the ceremony, and a lot of great films got honoured rightfully so; there were even a few astounding surprises, like first time — and long overdue — Oscar nominee Delroy Lindo (for Sinners), Jacob Elordi securing his spot for his breathtaking performance as the Creature in Frankenstein, and Train Dreams getting a handful of nominations including Best Picture. There are other great achievements, including Sinners breaking the record for having the most nominations in Academy Awards history at sixteen (although having that new Best Casting category helps with this, this is an incredible achievement nonetheless), One Battle After Another tallying up a slew of nominations across the board, and Wagner Moura being the first Brazilian star to be nominated for Best Actor. If you are new to Films Fatale, I welcome you to our awards season festivities, where I rank every Oscar nominated film in each category and discuss all of the predictions and movement throughout the next few weeks leading up to the 98th Academy Awards.
Before we party, I want to go over the snubs. Every year, I highlight the biggest snub of each category as I approach it, but I have decided this year that waiting five weeks to finally get the chance to discuss, say, a negligent Best Actress snub (I leave the biggest categories for last) just doesn’t cut it anymore. The feelings are still fresh the morning of the nominations announcement. Besides, to collect all of the ranting into one article just makes sense; it may help keep each individual ranking article focused on the selected nominees. It also is less collective work to add that sixth nominee every single time, and so honouring them all here gives them some extra kudos while allowing me to cook on each article a little more directly. I will preface this list by saying that I will be picking what I find to be the biggest snub of every category; some will have multiple snubs (which I will detail), and yet I am forcing myself to select just one per category; some categories were well handled this year, so the snub I pick isn’t necessarily a major complaint but rather an afterthought (you will know which kind of selection is which). Here aren’t your nominees.
Best Picture
It Was Just an Accident
I could go into all of the films that I felt were Best Picture worthy, like Sorry, Baby, No Other Choice, Sound of Falling, and the like, but I will instead reserve this slot for a film that racked up two major nominations and failed to get the highly-predicted Best Picture nod: It Was Just an Accident. This heartstopping film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes, which has been the precursor to being nominated here quite frequently since Parasite (except for Titane, and, I guess, now this film). Unlike Titane (which was heavily ignored by the Academy), It Was Just an Accident was even nominated for its screenplay which is a massive deal for an international title. Considering that F1 — a so-so film at best — got in above It Was Just an Accident is, well, simply put, a stupid accident.
Best Director
It Was Just an Accident-Jafar Panahi
In that same breath, I must bring up the lack of Jafar Panahi for Best Director. Now, I do think the final five nominees are an excellent batch, so Panahi not being here is not nearly as egregious as It Was Just an Accident not making the Best Picture slate. However, I do want to point out how compelling the film is, the excellent pacing and tone, and especially that unforgettable final image which could only have been pulled off by a director who knows how to toy with his audience and get them hypnotized by his craft; such is the case with an acclaimed and respected director like Panahi.
Best Actress in a Leading Role
The Testament of Ann Lee-Amanda Seyfried
While I do ache over the omission of the bright newcomer Chase Infiniti (who I actually consider to have the best performance in One Battle After Another; fight me), if I have to pick just one snub here (consider Infiniti a very close honourable mention), I have to pick Amanda Seyfried in The Testament of Ann Lee who unquestionably had one of the best performances of the entire year. Seyfried is as committed as a star can be in this vulnerable, possessed, intense role, and I honestly don’t think anyone was as sacrificial as she was here; it’s too bad that the distribution team behind The Testament of Ann Lee didn’t have nearly as much commitment as Seyfried did, considering how late the film was released and how little it was promoted; this film having zero nominations is a travesty.
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Train Dreams-Joel Edgerton
The Best Actor race is a very competitive one, but I still hurt for Joel Edgerton who has never been nominated for an Academy Award. I didn’t feel like he was guaranteed a spot here, but, considering that he did get that surprising Golden Globe nomination, I did hope that Edgerton’s tender, emotional, pure performance in Train Dreams would have been recognized here as well. I cannot complain about the five brilliant nominees we did wind up with, but I can only hope that it will one day be Edgerton’s time.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Wicked for Good-Ariana Grande
Wicked: For Good is really not the best film, but I remember when Ariana Grande was once slated to win this category; here we are, and she is completely missing now. I will say that as flawed as the film is, one factor improved from the first part and that’s Grande’s even-stronger performance (she was nominated for Wicked). What her lack of a nomination here leads me to believe is that enough Academy voters do vote on behalf of the film and not the intended element of each category; I know Wicked: For Good is quite worse, but is this category not to spotlight how strong of a performance Grande has here? Then again, maybe voters considered this category fraud and felt that Grande was actually a lead this time around, thus snubbing her (let me remind you, this is the same Academy that nominated LaKeith Stanfield as a supporting actor for Judas and the Black Messiah).
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Hamnet-Paul Mescal
Poor Paul Mescal. He wasn’t going to get in ahead of the two One Battle After Another actors, nor was he going to surpass Stellan Skarsgård and his (eventual) first nomination (for Sentimental Value), but I also cannot deny Delroy Lindo or Jacob Elordi for their deserved nominations as well. I think Mescal is exemplary in Hamnet and a major reason why key parts (including the grand finale) work so well. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be in a year that was insanely stacked in this category, so I will give Mescal my flowers here; how he has only been nominated once (for Aftersun) is also puzzling, to be frank.
Best Casting
Sentimental Value
Best Casting is a brand new category, so I don’t have too many thoughts here except for one: here is a film where literally all four of its key actors were nominated (including the pleasant and welcome surprise of Elle Fanning for Best Supporting Actress; I didn’t think she would pull it off, but one of the best younger actors working today finally has an Oscar nom). Does that not prove that the casting for Sentimental Value was incredibly well handled? I know it likely isn’t the same people voting in each acting category voting for Best Casting, but it just looks a little odd, doesn’t it?
Best Original Screenplay
Sorry, Baby
I am incredibly disappointed — but, sadly, not surprised — by the complete omission of Eva Victor’s sensational debut film, Sorry, Baby. I would have wanted to see this film across the board (for Picture, Director, Actress, et cetera), but how this film did not wind up in Best Original Screenplay during a rather wonky year for the category is astounding. This is a brilliantly written film by a promising newcomer who I am greatly anticipating new projects from. Victor’s screenplay is fully realized, as witty as it is crushing, and poetically enriched. Did you all not listen to Julia Roberts to see this damn film? This is one of the worst snubs of the year.
Best Adapted Screenplay
No Other Choice
The Best Adapted Screenplay category is quite competitive this year, but I will bring up the clever and vicious screenplay for No Other Choice here as a slight snub. It isn’t easy to pull off biting satire while carrying multiple tones (comedy, tragedy, thriller, et cetera), and No Other Choice is certainly one of the wittiest films of 2025. However, what I am more upset about is…
Best International Feature Film
No Other Choice-South Korea
The Academy hates Park Chan-wook. Flat out. Don’t point to the controversy where he was expelled from the Writers Guild of America (perhaps why the film missed out on a screenplay nominated… perhaps). The Academy has always hated Park. Many of his best works — Decision to Leave, Oldboy, The Handmaiden — were shunned by the Academy. If Decision to Leave didn’t get nominated for fucking anything during a weaker year overall, I am sadly unsurprised that No Other Choice got zero nominations this year, but that doesn’t make it okay. This is one of the strongest South Korean directors of all time whose films have had a massive impact on the industry and the Academy honours every shitty film affiliated with a Diane Warren song more than a living legend. This is beyond ridiculous at this point. Having said that, the five nominees are really good, but No Other Choice is still missing.
Best Documentary Feature Film
My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 — Last Air in Moscow
I cannot blame the Academy for not wanting to watch a five-and-a-half hour film about the many days leading up to Russia’s takeover of Ukraine, but they did kind of (nay, truly) miss out on the best documentary of the year. I feel like this may have been an accessibility concern as well, considering how hard it was to get a hold of My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 — Last Air in Moscow for most; I do feel like the film’s reputation was rising, but it was perhaps gaining steam just a little too late.
Best Animated Feature Film
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle
I don’t generally have any complaints for the Best Animated Feature Film nominees (it wasn’t the strongest year for animated feature films overall), but I will throw in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle as a snub (it’s stronger than Elio, that’s for sure). This is a gorgeously animated and thrilling film. I will say that I do think that watching an entire series and a few other feature-length projects before getting to Infinity Castle was just too much homework for the Academy, but I use this film as a mild example of how frequently the Academy turns its nose at anime films of any sort; it’s getting a little silly at this point. I don’t know if Infinity Castle (or the Chainsaw Man film) is the best example (given how much one needs to watch before getting to these feature films), but it’s a valid point nonetheless: why does the Academy hate anime?
Best Live Action Short Film
Rock, Paper, Scissors
This is a bit of a shock. The presence surrounding the harrowing Rock, Paper, Scissors is immense, and I thought this anti-war short was a lock for sure. Once again, the short film categories always feel like shitshows where anything goes, and this poignant, visceral short not being nominated is quite perplexing and unexpected. I am thrilled that my favourite of the live action shorts, Two People Exchanging Saliva, made the cut, though.
Best Documentary Short Film
Bad Hostage
While I did have one omitted film above this one in my ranking of the documentary short hopefuls (On Healing Land, Birds Perch), I can chalk that film missing out on the fact that it is hard to get a hold of and watch. Then, there’s Bad Hostage, which is a great doc short that is as readily available, accessible, and engrossing as a doc short can be. I thought this one was a safe bet, but I must be clueless.
Best Animated Short Film
Snow Bear
Now I am not exaggerating when I say that this is amongst the worst snubs of the year. How in the actual fuck did a film like Snow Bear not make the final cut? This exquisite and stunning short has made me cry every time I have watched it (yes, I have seen it more than once). I absolutely adore this film, its message, its simplicity, its artistry, and especially that beautiful final shot that sends tears down my eyes every time (it is a message that everyone deserves to be loved and to live). Well, the Academy thought otherwise, clearly; while some great shorts did get recognized, at least one major head-scratching nomination (The Three Sisters, which is decent but not great) leaves me livid about Snow Bear not even being nominated when it should have fully won the Oscar.
Best Original Score
Hedda
I really didn’t care much for Hedda, but I will point out strengths in a film when they are there. The five nominees for Best Original Score are great, so I don’t really have any complaints, but I am a bit sad that Hildur Guðnadóttir’s terrific work in Hedda — a major highlight of the film — missed the boat here. She is a tremendous contemporary composer who I hope gets even more praise and accolades as the years come and go, so maybe this Hedda omission isn’t the worst thing.
Best Original Song
“Salt Then Sour Then Sweet”-Come See Me in the Good Light
I am pleased that the warmly tragic documentary, Come See Me in the Good Light, did get nominated as a feature film. However, its affiliated song, “Salt Then Sour Then Sweet” — by Sara Bareilles, Brandi Carlile, and the late Andrea Gibson themself — not making the final cut stings. Sure, we need yet another Diane Warren song (it’s a decent tune this time around), but the bigger frustration comes in the form of “Salt Then Sour Then Sweet” not making it (even though its film did get recognized by the Academy, at least), when the Viva Verdi! song — “Sweet Dreams of Joy” — is attached to a film that has barely ever seen the light of day (outside of a handful of pop up screenings). Sure, just hearing the song is one thing (I’m sure that’s what the voters did here with “Sweet Dreams of Joy”), but is it not important to see the context in which the song is being used? I guarantee that most voters haven’t seen Viva Verdi! (which has an astonishingly low amount of IMDb star ratings at fucking twenty total by the time I wrote this piece). I’m sure Viva Verdi! is a great film and I look forward to watching it, but I am quite sick of the blatant fraudulence in this category (which is, to be fair, frequently my least favourite category).
Best Sound
Avatar: Fire and Ash
I don’t have many complaints with the final five nominees for Best Sound, but I was stunned that Avatar: Fire and Ash didn’t make the cut. I guess the Academy really wasn’t feeling the film this year. I still expected to see Fire and Ash pop up in the tech categories, so not seeing it here felt like a major wake-up call: you cannot just release an Avatar film and expect it to clean up many categories. It has to be good.
Best Cinematography
The Sound of Falling
Not seeing any presence for Sound of Falling is quite sad, but the biggest insult is how the film’s mind-blowing cinematography didn’t get recognized here. The incredible depth of field, the magnificent sepia and silver tones, and the numerous intricate shots make this film one of the greatest looking motion pictures of 2025. This is a tough category this year, but it still feels wrong that Sound of Falling isn’t even considered in a category that it could have even won had the awards season race played out differently.
Best Film Editing
Hamnet
The five nominees are nothing to sneeze at, but I do feel like the Best Film Editing nominees usually go hand-in-hand with the most aggressive Best Picture hopefuls. Even ignoring that silly tradition, Hamnet is a sublimely edited film. The clever use of J and L cuts to allow spoken sentiments to flow through time and memory; the transcendent flow of pacing; the grand finale working as well as it does because of its tight, precise, flavourful cutting and splicing. I actually think Hamnet is a superbly edited film that deserves to have made the final group.
Best Visual Effects
Frankenstein
I don’t have too may reservations with the Best Visual Effects nominees (outside of Jurassic World Rebirth’s presence making it easily amongst the worst films to be nominated this year; its effects are quite great, to be fair), but I am a little befuddled by Frankenstein’s absence here: this film popped up nearly everywhere else in the production and tech categories, and yet its visual effects — which are fairly strong — apparently were not good enough. At least Frankenstein appeared in the majority of the categories it should, and I don’t consider this omission the biggest snub or anything.
Best Costume Design
Hedda
Again, I am not the biggest fan of Hedda, but I thought it was a shoe-in for Best Costume Design at the very least. Despite how dull the film is, the majority of its essence and life stems from the magnificence of the costumes being worn; they truly add a bulk of the character and charm to the film. These intricately designed outfits not getting recognized feels incredibly odd; this is a rare year where a traditional costume drama did not wind up in this category, and I truly believed that Hedda was going to be that representative. I do want to shout out the unexpected nomination for Avatar: Fire and Ash for this category, because it is quite an unusual yet interesting selection that honestly feels a little bit like a game changer; what constitutes as costume design and how it is applied to a film like Avatar.
Best Production Design
No Other Choice
Yes, No Other Choice got nothing. We get it. However, I do think it deserves one last shout out here because of how terrific the production design is. Whether you are inside a house of luxury or a cluttered mess of chaos, every setting in No Other Choice was key to establishing the mindset of who lived in each domicile (as well as setting the mood for each scene). This is a masterclass in production design, as far as I’m concerned, and another major snub by the Academy.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Wicked: For Good
Finally, we have Best Makeup and Hairstyling. The five nominees are actually really good this year (yes, even The Smashing Machine, whose sole nomination is the only one it deserved, in my opinion). I do think that the excellent makeup and hair work in Wicked: For Good deserves to be mentioned because of how much work clearly went into each and every character (again, it’s even more impressive this film than in Wicked). Its absence isn’t the worst thing about this year’s picks, but, if I had to pick one snub for this category, it would be the strong work in Wicked: For Good.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.