Tuesday 23rd January marked the release of the highly anticipated 2024 Oscar nominations. Oppenheimer swept the floor with a tremendous 13 nominations, Poor Things followed suit with 11 and Killers of the Flower Moon with 9. Barbie was nominated in 6 categories: ‘Best Picture’, ‘Best Adapted Screenplay’, ‘Best Supporting Actor’, ‘Best Supporting Actress’, ‘Best Costume Design’ and ‘Best Product Design’. But, surprisingly, Greta Gerwig was snubbed for ‘Best Director’. Barbie became the highest-grossing film ever made by a female director and the highest-grossing film of 2023, earning more than $1.38 billion worldwide. But despite all these huge achievements, the mastermind behind the camera failed to get recognised by the Academy for her work. However, it is surprising that Ryan Gosling was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Ken in the movie.
Ryan Gosling thanked the Academy for his nomination and stated: “There is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally celebrated film […] To say that I’m disappointed that they are not nominated in their respective categories would be an understatement.”
Gerwig received nominations from the Golden Globes and the Directors Guild of America, so why was she snubbed by the Oscars? The directors branch of the Academy, who vote for the nominees for the ‘Best Director’ category, are made up of around only a quarter of women. It has been speculated whether the majority of the directors’ branch prioritised the other male-led movies released within the past year over this ground-breaking female-led movie. Gerwig’s snub, therefore, begs the question of whether the Academy really understood the movie, or did they simply choose to ignore the message that Greta Gerwig tried to portray.
Written By: Niamh Westgarth
Edited By: Adrita Barua