# Favorite non-Oscar winning performances **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 23, 2003, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893 "2003-02-23T02:53:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/1 "2003-02-23T02:53:39Z")
That’s right, I want to know your favorite film performances no matter how campy or silly or over-the-top that did NOT recieve the Acadamy Award. And please, let’s try not to criticise each other’s choices, it’s all opinion after all. Some that spring to mind: William Powell and Myrna Loy in _The Thin Man_ William Powell and James Cagney in _Mr. Roberts_ Spencer Tracy in _Captains Courageous_ Bruce Campbell in _Evil Dead II_ and _Army of Darkness_ Pierce Brosnan and Geoffery Rush in _The Tailor of Panama_ Lawrence Olivier and Michael Caine in _Sleuth_ Albert Brooks in \*_Broadcast News_ Nicole Kidman in _Moulin Rouge_ Jamie Lee Curtis and Michael Palin in _A Fish Called Wanda_ ---
**Author:** ![scablet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@scablet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scablet)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/2 "2003-02-23T02:59:54Z")
Ellen Burstyn in _Requiem for a Dream_. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/3 "2003-02-23T03:10:11Z")
Ian McKellan in Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/4 "2003-02-23T04:06:28Z")
A couple more just struck me: Russell Crowe in _LA Confidential_ Leonardo DiCaprio in _What’s Eating Gilbert Grape_ ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/5 "2003-02-23T04:09:07Z")
Andy Serkis in … guess what. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/6 "2003-02-23T04:16:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Silentgoldfish \* > \*\*Andy Serkis in … guess what. \*\* It’d help if I knew who Andy Serkis was. A quick trip to the [imdb](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Serkis,+Andy) though and I’m guessing you liked him for the Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers. (Since Gollum wasn’t much of a role in FOTR) ---
**Author:** ![Triss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Triss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triss)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/7 "2003-02-23T04:25:02Z")
Another vote for Ellen Burstyn in _Requiem for a Dream_. God, she was great, wasn’t she? Bruce Willis in _Death Becomes Her_ ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/8 "2003-02-23T04:35:31Z")
Dustin Hoffman in _Midnight Cowboy_. In my opinion, the greatest Oscar travesty of all time. ---
**Author:** ![scablet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@scablet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scablet)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/9 "2003-02-23T04:47:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Triss \* > \*\*Another vote for Ellen Burstyn in _Requiem for a Dream_. God, she was great, wasn’t she? Hands-down best female performance of 2000, IMO. Perhaps even best performance of 2000 period. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/10 "2003-02-23T04:52:29Z")
Haven’t seen _Requiem for a Dream_, but 2 nods for Burstyn’s performance is piquing my curiosity. And **KarlGauss** - thanks for reminding me about Hoffman in _Midnight Cowboy_! Here’s a few more I thought of recently (I had a list written up at one point for this thread but have since lost it): Tom Hanks in _A League of Their Own_ Val Kilmer in _Tombstone_ Alan Rickman in _Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves_ John Belushi in _Animal House_ The cast of _Pulp Fiction_ ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/11 "2003-02-23T04:56:29Z")
Hate to nitpick but Spencer Tracy DID win for _Captains Courageous_. Anyway, back to the subject of the thread, here are some that come to mind: Peter Sellers in _Dr. Strangelove_; Peter Sellers in _Being There_; Robert Shaw in _Jaws_; James Stewart in _Vertigo_; Peter O’ Toole in _Lawrence of Arabia_; Nicole Kidman in _To Die For_; Helena Bonham Carter in _Wings of the Dove_; Kevin Spacey in _Se7en_; and Henry Fonda in _Grapes of Wrath_. I’m sure I’ll think of some others later. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/12 "2003-02-23T05:30:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NDP \* > \*\*Hate to nitpick but Spencer Tracy DID win for _Captains Courageous_. \*\* D’oh! He sure as hell did! Let’s just all pretend that’s not there then, shall we? Pretend it’s Sesame Street and we’re using our imaginations. ---
**Author:** ![HelloKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecccb3/32.png) [@HelloKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HelloKitty)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/13 "2003-02-23T06:36:38Z")
I still think Jim Carrey was robbed for **The Truman Show** ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/14 "2003-02-23T07:45:39Z")
Russell Crowe in _A Beautiful Mind_. Samuel L. Jackson in _Pulp Fiction_ - one of my favorite performances in movie history. ---
**Author:** ![New\_Improved\_Scott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f17d59/32.png) [@New\_Improved\_Scott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/New_Improved_Scott)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/15 "2003-02-23T08:14:45Z")
Linda Fiorentino in _The Last Seduction_. Guy Pierce in _LA Confidential_. Bill Shatner in _Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan_ [sub]“Khaaaan!!!”[/sub] Robin Williams in _Aladdin_. Harrison Ford in _Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade_ ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_of\_the\_CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Earl\_of\_the\_CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_of_the_CC)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/16 "2003-02-23T15:10:17Z")
I second Burstyn. Great performance. The big one for me though is Andy Serkis as Gollum. Animation, shmamination, it was a great performance and he deserved a big ol’ award for it. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/17 "2003-02-23T16:00:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by HelloKitty \* > \*\*I still think Jim Carrey was robbed for **The Truman Show** \*\* THANK YOU HelloKitty! I agree! ---
**Author:** ![Blackhawkeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@Blackhawkeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackhawkeye)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/18 "2003-02-23T16:04:53Z")
Denzel in Malcolm X ---
**Author:** ![KinSaba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7bcc69/32.png) [@KinSaba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KinSaba)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/19 "2003-02-23T17:20:07Z")
Steve Martin in Roxanne ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2003, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893/20 "2003-02-23T19:17:30Z")
**Paul Newman** in _The Hustler_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-non-oscar-winning-performances/156893.md?page=2)