10 Incredible Performances The Academy Ignored This Year
Just because you weren't nominated doesn't mean we didn't notice.
Any actor who tells you that an Academy Award 'doesn't mean anything to them', must be lying, right?
Of course, many of the finest actors working today will all confess to doing the job they do because they all simply adore the opportunity they get to explore the human condition through the medium of film. Not necessarily the awards that come with that work.
However, as an aspiring thespian, the idea of winning an Oscar for Best Supporting/Lead Actor/Actress represented reaching the absolute pinnacle of the industry and was a symbol of your peers' unquestionable respect towards your art.
Yet, over time it has become abundantly clear that the Academy doesn't always honour the year's stand-out turns and this is probably why many actors don't put as much stock into the iconic awards as they used to. Often the awards ceremony becomes nothing more than an elitist club (discounting any film which doesn't fit the 'Oscar' mould) and a signal of just how white-washed the world of filmmaking still is - as referenced in the severe lack of nominees of colour throughout the history of the event.
And 2020 was no different, as heartfelt portrayals in blockbusters, intense character studies and comedic actors proving they have the chops to hang with the best of them, were all overlooked by the Academy...
...but they won't be overlooked here!
10. Lupita Nyong'o (Us)
Jordan Peele's next outing, after tearing up the horror/thriller/comedy rulebook (if there even was such a thing) with his breakout hit Get Out, landed on cinema screens in 2019 and it went by the name of Us.
Centred around a family who head out for a vacation in the woods - like they do every year - things start to take a turn when they are faced with themselves dressed in red jumpsuits.
Tackling themes such as oppression and the darker side of what it is to be human, the film is anchored by the central performance of Lupita Nyong'o as Adelaide Wilson.
Playing both Adelaide and her clone Red (who is revealed to be more than what she seems - even though what she seems is still pretty damn terrifying) Nyong'o created two distinct characters who both forced you to empathise with their plights and motivations throughout the feature.
Yet, one of the most compelling, nuanced and downright chilling performances of the year was completely overlooked in the 2020 Best Actress category and it makes you wonder what more she needed to do in order to be considered for a nomination, at the very least.
You could argue that this performance was even more impressive than her Oscar winning turn in 12 Years a Slave...though the Academy obviously didn't think so.