5 stars shockingly SNUBBED at Oscars: From Tom Cruise to Johnny Depp

Hollywood works in mysterious works, and the Academy works in even more mysterious ways still, with snubs and snafus that have left film buffs scratching their heads for years.

There’s a long list of actors and artists who you could swear would have multiple Oscars in their cabinet, and would be shocked to know that they don’t have even one as the gold knight continues to elude sometimes the most deserving of the lot!

We’ve compiled a list of some of the most eyebrow-raising snubs in Oscar’s history, so read on for some serious shockers.

Tom Cruise

One of the most prolific actors of this generation, Tom Cruise surprisingly has no Oscar trophy to his name, despite his stellar performances on screen and at box office.

Cruise, who had his breakthrough in Hollywood in the 1980s with hits like Risky Business (1983) and Top Gun (1986), which is still regarded as one of the top-billed franchises, has been nominated three times for his acting prowess and once as a producer, but the gold statue keeps eluding him.

The 62-year-old has twice been nominated in the Best Actor category for his work in 1989’s Born on the Fourth of July and 1996’s Jerry Maguire. He lost the first to Daniel Day-Lewis and the second to Geoffrey Rush. He was then nominated as a supporting actor in 1999’s Magnolia, eventually losing to Michael Cane.

23 long years later, Cruise had another shot, bagging a nomination as a producer on Best Picture nominee Top Gun: Maverick (2022), but lost out to Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Bradley Cooper

Bradley Cooper is famously a favourite of the Academy, but only when it comes to nominations and not the actual trophy.

Cooper is one of the most-nominated artists at the Oscars, but has never walked on stage to accept one much to his and his fans’ dismay.

The 50-year-old maestro was nominated thrice in a row in the 2010s for his roles in 2012’s Silver Linings Playbook, 2013’s American Hustle, and then 2014’s American Sniper (2014), however, lost all three times to Daniel Day-Lewis, Jared Leto, and Eddie Redmayne respectively.

Cooper then put in even more work to score the elusive trophy, directing himself in 2018’s A Star Is Born and 2023’s Maestro to bag nominations, but lost both times as well.

Aside for recognition for his acting, Cooper has seven other nominations to his name but to no avail.

Cooper’s Academy repertoire includes Best Picture nominations for his work on American Sniper, A Star Is Born, Joker, Nightmare Alley, and Maestro, as well as screenplay nominations for A Star Is Born and Maestro.

Samuel L. Jackson

Despite Samuel L. Jackson’s many memorable roles in his impressive filmography, ranging from Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, Django Unchained, True Romance, and Jurassic Park, the legendary screen star has no Oscar to his name.

That’s not all, he also doesn’t have many nominations to boast of, having only been recognised by the Academy once, when he earned a Best Supporting Actor nomination in 1995 for his role in Pulp Fiction. He lost the trophy to Martin Landau that year.

Despite the Academy’s starling lack of recognition of Jackson’s work over the years, they did award him with a lifetime achievement in film award in 2022, perhaps in an effort to right this very wrong!

Johnny Depp

While Johnny Depp may not be as critically acclaimed as some others on this list, it would be wrong to suggest that Depp hasn’t delivered some very memorable and nod-worthy performances. And the Academy thinks so too, just not enough to award him with the gold statue, however.

61-year-old Depp, who started out in the 80s with films like A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and Platoon (1986) and had his breakthrough with a role in 21 Jump Street, has three Oscar nominations to his name till date.

He bagged his first nomination for 2003’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, then for 2004’s Finding Neverland, and finally for his role in 2007’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. He lost out on all three to Sean Penn, Jamie Foxx, and Daniel Day-Lewis respectively.

Saoirse Ronan

She may be one of the youngest on this list, but Saoirse Ronan is no stranger to being a youngster amongst much older peers!

At 25, Ronan has amassed four main Oscar nominations, bagging the first one at just 13, when she was nominated for her supporting role in 2007’s Atonement. She has since followed this up with three nominations in the Best Actor category, in what is a true testament to her incredible talent.

Ronan was nominated for her performance in Brooklyn (2015), Lady Bird (2017), and Little Women (2019).

While the Academy may recognize Ronan’s acting prowess, it has failed to give her her flowers yet; in 2007, she lost out to Tilda Swinton, and then subsequently lost out on the Best Actor trophy to Brie Larson, Frances McDormand, and Renee Zellweger.