10 Phenomenally Talented Actors Who Have Never Won Oscars

7. Jeff Daniels

Known mostly for his broader performances in 1990's blockbusters, Jeff Daniels is a truly gifted dramatic actor. In 1985, he received a nomination for a Best Actor in a Comedy/Music Golden Globe for his first starring role in Woody Allen's The Purple Rose of Cairo. The next year, he was starring in Jonathan Demme's exciting romantic-comedy meets psychological thriller Something Wild for which he was also nominated for a Golden Globe. 1994 gave his popularity a boost with the releases of Speed and Dumb and Dumber, but it was in 1998 that Daniels gave a strong portrayal of Bill Johnson, a malt-shop owner in the fictional television town of Pleasantville who discovers a passion for painting. The performance is often overlooked as it's separate from the main plot of the story, but is certainly worth a second look. It wasn't until 2006 that Daniels found himself nominated for another Golden Globe, this time as Bernard Berkman in Noah Baumbach's extremely personal The Squid and the Whale. With a budget of just $1,500,000 and a runtime of only 82 minutes, The Squid and the Whale might seem a bit small for Oscar consideration, yet Baumbach was nominated for the screenplay, so why no Daniels? The Squid and the Whale is truly Daniels at his best: A bitter, jealous, and frustrated writer estranged from his more successful wife. The film examines the mind games divorced parents play with their children and former spouses, Daniels playing Berkman with a quiet, narcissistic rage that's ready to break. The role paved the way for a later stage of his career as an indie-film regular, but The Squid and the Whale was truly lightning in a bottle.