Top 10 2025 Oscar Snubs
10. Naomi Scott, ‘Smile 2’ for Best Actress
How Naomi Scott missed out on a phenomenal performance during this award season is beyond me. Not only is Smile 2 one of her best performances so far but it also ended up in my Top 10 of 2024 films. As Skye Riley she displayed so much vulnerability and fear that it was just so heartbreaking to see her character fall into insanity. Not even considering Naomi Scott for this performance is a head scratcher considering Demi Moore got in for The Substance.
9. Zendaya, 'Challengers’ for Best Actress
Now, while I will admit I'm not the biggest fan of Challengers like a lot of my friends are, I do think that this is easily Zendaya's best performance. As sweet as she is in reality it was quite a surprise to see her play such an despicable character. Her performance definitely showed that she has the capability to dig deep into herself and pull out a arsenal of her that we have never seen.
8. Longlegs for Best Cinematography
Longlegs was a bit of a mixed bag with audiences. While, Maika Monroe is phenomenal in her performance (not a surprise) the ending left a sour taste in my mouth because I was still left with questions. With that being said Longlegs is a great film to look at. Watching this made me feel like I was watching a murder documentary or even a film on VHS. Even if this film wasn't going to get into the main categories it should have at least gotten in for cinematography.
7. Bill Skarsgard, ‘Nosferatu’ for Best Actor In A Supporting Role
Yes, Nosferatu did score some nominations but only in the technical categories. Nosferatu was able to get into best cinematography, production design, costume design and makeup/hairstyling. Bill Skarsgard's performance was a complete character transformation. I watched this film twice and I kept forgetting that he was in the film because of how freakishly, creepy he was. It's a shame that one of the best character performances in 2024 got overlooked simply because it's a horror movie.
6. Lily Rose Deep, ‘Nosferatu’ for Best Actress
After watching this performance I can truly confirm that Lily Rose Deep is one of the most talented nepo babies. She displayed so much fear, distraught and was very vulnerable throughout this film. Some people might not be into horror or period pieces which is fine but there is no denying that Lily Rose Deep had two great dance partners in Bill Skarsgard and Nicholas Hoult that pushed her beyond her limit. Lily Rose Deep performance is much more than just being “scared”.
Her performance displays a disgruntled woman that is continously gaslighted by the men around her for not believing her “stories" of this dangerous creature after her. It's obviously one of the best real world metaphors for sexual assault that woman experience on a daily basis and how traumatic that can be despite when it happens in your life.
5. Alien: Romulus Only Gets In For Visual Effects
Out of all the categories that this film could have gotten into and it only gets into Best VFX? What's up, with that? On a serious note, Alien: Romulus isn’t anything groundbreaking when it comes to the horror genre considering it just copies the same formula as the original Alien. However, I will say that even though this film felt like the original but with young adults/teenagers it is shot beautifully. This easily should have been considered for the cinematography category.
4. I Watch The TV Glow Misses Out In Best Cinematography & Original Screenplay
A24 rarely has any misses with their films and this was a perfect example. This movie is shot like I was in another dimension, not to mention how this film discusses escapism. The ending of this film left me rather confused at first because if you're not a queer person then you might not get the message of the ending. Either way this is one of the best movies of the past year and to not see it get into anything including the technical categories is kind of a bummer.
3. Denzel Washington, ‘Gladiator II' for Best Supporting Actor
Just like Alien: Romulus, Gladiator II runs into the problem of having the exact same story as the original but with different actors. With that being said there is no denying that Denzel Washington is easily the saving grace of this film. His character is neither good or evil, just simply misunderstood. I think that if this film revolved around his character then it would have been received a lot better.
2. ‘Challengers’ for Best Picture
Let me start with this: ANYTHING IS BETTER THAN EMILIA PÉREZ! I'm sorry but how that film is receiving all the praise for award season over Challengers is beyond me. While I didn't love Challengers like a lot of my other film fanatics did I do appreciate the acting performances, cinematography, score and even how the tenis scenes are shot. Let me ask you readers something. Which film would you rather watch again: Emilia Pérez a film that was not only disrespectful to the Mexican and Trans community but also just a terrible musical or a beautifully shot Sports film with a great score and phenomenal acting performances?
1. Denis Villeneuve, ‘Dune: Part Two’ for Best Director
Out of the three categories that Dune: Part Two missed out of on from Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor (Austin Butler) and Best Supporting Actress (Rebecca Fergunson) this one is definitely the most questionable of them all. I would definitely be able to overlook those snubs if Denis Villeneuve got in for Best Director considering that it got in for Best Picture. However, this wouldn't be the first time a film got in for Best Picture but the director did not. Seeing Denis Villeneuve expand this beloved universe while also introducing new characters into play, adding humor and expanding on the Fremen people and their culture wasn't easy to do in almost 3 hours but he did. There is no question that this film is exceeds in three categories: being one of the best sequels, one of the best Sci-fi films and cementing Denis Villeneuve as one of the best directors.
