11 Movies Nominated For Tons Of Oscars (That Somehow Didn't Win Any)

5. Gangs Of New York (0 For 10)

Despite the fact that Martin Scorsese had been planning to make Gangs of New York since 1978, when it was finally released in 2002 it wasn't exactly the movie he wanted to make. His choice for the female lead, Sarah Polley, was reportedly rejected by Miramax for not being a big enough star (Cameron Diaz was cast instead). There were numerous on-set fights over budget issues, resulting in both Scorsese and star Leonardo DiCaprio giving up much of their salary. Finally, because Scorsese's original cut ran over three and a half hours the release was delayed from December 2001 to December 2002 because producers wanted it shortened (the final release runs just over two hours). While even a truncated Scorsese movie might be awards-worthy in the eyes of Hollywood, Gangs of New York was shutout at the 2003 Oscars despite ten nominations. Another Miramax production, Chicago, beat Gangs of New York in six of those categories, including Best Picture. On top of that, Scorsese lost Best Director to The Pianist director Roman Polanski, a controversial pick to say the least because Polanski has been a fugitive from the U.S. ever since his 1978 conviction for allegedly sexually assaulting a 13 year-old girl. Though Gangs of New York isn't considered one of Scorsese's best films, Chicago isn't really regarded as a classic either. Nonetheless, one wonders if Scorsese would have needed to wait until 2007 to finally win a Best Director Oscar had Gangs of New York been made to his original plans.