An audible gasp was heard when The Lego Movie wasn't included in the Oscar nominees for best animated feature. The film, which has received numerous other nominations and honors, was a frontrunner for an Oscar nom. But co-director Phil Lord seemed to be taking the snub in stride, tweeting a photo of a Lego Oscar statuette with the caption, "It's okay. Made my own!"
Jennifer Aniston was expected by many to land an Oscar nomination for her role as a woman suffering from chronic pain in Cake, particularly after she received Critics Choice, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for her work.
Both films were denied best documentary Oscar nominations despite being on The Hollywood Reporter awards analyst Scott Feinberg's list of likely nominees. Both films had also received accolades from critics groups and nominations for other awards. Life Itself director Steve James was famously denied a best documentary Oscar nomination for Hoop Dreams, something Life Itself subject Roger Ebert himself was outraged by. Ebert's widow also responded to Life Itself's snub.
Paramount's Selma earned two Oscar noms (for best picture and best song), but the film's star David Oyelowo didn't receive a nomination for his role as Martin Luther King Jr., and director Ava DuVernay wasn't included among the nominees for best director, a nomination that would have made her the first black woman to be up for an Oscar in that category.
The American Sniper director saw his film earn six Oscar noms, including one for star Bradley Cooper, but Eastwood, who would have been the oldest best director nominee, wasn't nominated for that award despite being up for a similar prize from the DGA.
Just days after winning the Golden Globe for best actress in a motion picture, musical or comedy for her role in Big Eyes, Amy Adams was denied a best actress Oscar nomination.
Nightcrawler's two stars were both denied acting nominations for the roles in Dan Gilroy's gripping look at the local news media in L.A. Gyllenhaal had earned Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for his role, while Russo recently landed a BAFTA nomination for her well-reviewed turn. Gilroy, who did receive a nomination for best original screenplay, lamented Gyllenhaal's omission, telling THR, "I thought Jake gave the performance of not just the year, but the performance of any year. … He deserved every award out there — at least every nomination."
Jessica Chastain starred in four Oscar hopefuls in 2014: Interstellar, Miss Julie, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby and A Most Violent Year, but the actress, who was previously nominated for her work in Zero Dark Thirty and The Help, received zero Oscar nominations on Thursday. Both Rigby and A Most Violent Year were completely shut out, the latter seeming particularly surprising after A Most Violent Year was named the best film of 2014 by the National Board of Review and considering that director J.C. Chandor's past two films each received an Oscar nom.
The Grand Budapest Hotel may have tied Birdman with its leading nine Oscar noms, but Wes Anderson's latest didn't receive any love in the acting categories, with star Ralph Fiennes among the most notable omissions.
David Fincher's highly anticipated movie version of the best-selling novel may have been a box-office hit this fall, but the film didn't fare as well with Oscar nominations, only earning one for Rosamund Pike's role. Gone Girl was left out of the adapted screenplay, director and best score categories, with Gillian Flynn, David Fincher and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who previously won an Oscar for their work on Fincher's The Social Network, all failing to land nominations.
Foxcatcher received four nominations — for best director (Bennett Miller), best actor (Steve Carell), best original screenplay and best supporting actor (Mark Ruffalo) — but the film itself wasn't nominated for best picture, and co-star Channing Tatum didn't get an acting nomination.
Although once thought of as being a contender for acting, directing and best picture nominations, Interstellar was largely ignored in those categories during awards season, and the Oscars were no different, giving the film five nominations, but mostly in technical categories.
Angelina Jolie's Unbroken is another one-time possible Oscar contender that was ignored by the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, except for a stunt nomination from SAG. The film did receive three Oscar nominations, but all of those were in technical categories.
Wild may have earned nominations for stars Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern, but the film didn't make the cut for best picture or best adapted screenplay (Nick Hornby).