Image Source: Everett Collection
Welp, that was anticlimactic. After months of generating Oscars buzz, Lady Gaga’s “House of Gucci” performance failed to receive a best actress nomination for this year’s Academy Awards, meaning all those “father, son, House of Gucci” chants we did for good luck were in vain. The five stars nominated for best actress are Jessica Chastain for “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Olivia Colman for “The Lost Daughter,” Penélope Cruz for “Parallel Mothers,” Nicole Kidman for “Being the Ricardos,” and Kristen Stewart for “Spencer.”
Gaga famously method acted to portray Italian socialite Patrizia Reggiani, speaking in an Italian accent for nine months and employing a psychiatric nurse to protect her mental health while filming, and yet the Academy only recognised “House of Gucci” in the makeup and hairstyling category. After the Oscar nominees were announced on Feb. 8, the multihyphenate applauded the movie’s hair and makeup team and all other stars who were recognised.
“To all the nominees this year, congratulations on all your hard work, dedication, your nomination and YOUR magic-you all deserve major recognition for what was a truly beautiful landscape of performances and accomplishments this past year,” she wrote on Instagram. Your dedication during Covid, your huge hearts, and your ability to tell amazing stories is a gift to the whole world during what is for many a very hard time. Congratulations my friends. Bravo!
Gaga’s snub is quite the surprise statistically speaking. She’s the only leading lady to secure nominations for four other major award shows – namely, the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Critics’ Choice Awards, and BAFTA Film Awards – and not score an Oscar nod. Back in 2019, she was nominated for all four of those aforementioned awards for her performance in “A Star Is Born,” and her song “Shallow” from the film ended up winning the Oscar for best original song. Though Gaga doesn’t technically need another Oscar to prove her talents, we can’t help but wonder what informed the Academy’s decision to omit her this time around. Perhaps Maurizio Gucci’s former girlfriend Paola Franchi is behind all of this?
Other noticeable Oscar snubs this year include Jennifer Hudson for her lead role in “Respect,” Ruth Negga for her supporting role in “Passing,” Bradley Cooper for his supporting role in “Licorice Pizza,” and Denis Villeneuve for directing “Dune.” Meanwhile, a few momentous firsts worth celebrating: Billie Eilish nabbed her first-ever Oscar nod for her song “No Time to Die,” as did Beyoncé for her song “Be Alive” from “King Richard.” “CODA” Actor Troy Kotsur also made history as the first deaf man to be nominated for an Oscar.
