POPSUGAR UK

Oscar Hall of Shame: 14 Movies the Nominees Probably Hope You Forgot About

13/02/2018 - 01:30 AM

We're in total awe over the performances of this year's Oscar nominees [1], but even seasoned actors make some interesting missteps on their way to the Academy Awards (yes, even Daniel Day-Lewis). Some films may have seemed really great on paper, but their execution left something to be desired — even if our talented nominees still gave it everything they had. For a lighter look at a season that celebrates some very serious films, check out the movies that this year's deserving Oscar nominees probably want you to forget about.

Woody Harrelson, Surfer, Dude

Something feels strangely authentic about Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey [3] in Surfer, Dude, but this "comedy" has the distinction of having a zero percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes [4]. Zero. Percent.

Seriously, just go watch them in True Detective instead.

Saoirse Ronan, The Host

Best actress nominee Saoirse Ronan has a pretty impeccable résumé — she got her first Oscar nomination for Atonement at age 13 — but she made a rare misstep when she toplined this sci-fi romance. Meant to be the next Twilight [5] (The Host is based on another of author Stephenie Meyer's books), the film just didn't resonate with young audiences in the same way.

Willem Dafoe, American Dreamz

The Florida Project's Dafoe has had a very long, interesting career, but his role in this American Idol satire is interesting in the bad way.

Margot Robbie, Suicide Squad

Suicide Squad had such promise, and certainly, Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn is one of the few bright spots in this muddled, overly ambitious mess. As memorable as she is, we're glad she went on to movies more deserving of her talents.

Mary J. Blige, Rock of Ages

OK, some parts of Rock of Ages are fun, and Blige definitely gets credit for that, but this musical disaster should have been left on the stage.

Gary Oldman, Red Riding Hood

Over the long and illustrious career of first-time Oscar nominee Oldman, he's played many villains, but in Red Riding Hood, he's playing his silliest one. As a holy man trying to exorcise werewolves from a small village, Oldman isn't bad, but this movie, starring a writhing Amanda Seyfried [6] as the title character, certainly is.

Meryl Streep, Death Becomes Her

Let's be clear: Death Becomes Her is so bad it's good, but considering the prestige that acting legend Streep has, it's kind of a head-scratcher to look back at her career and see this film. As a woman who's trying to become immortal in order to stay beautiful, she experiences lots of creeptastic side effects. Let's just file this one under guilty pleasure and be glad that the best actress nominee never turns her head all the way around on screen anymore.

Richard Jenkins, Rumor Has It

Oof. Richard Jenkins is a national treasure, but this odd comedy — a confusing follow-up of sorts to The Graduate — is a black mark on a legacy of delightful romantic comedies.

Octavia Spencer, Allegiant

Divergent's first film adaptation started strong, but by the time we got to this, the third movie in the trilogy, just about everything interesting about it had fallen by the wayside (as did the cast for the fourth and final installment [7]).

Sam Rockwell, Everybody's Fine

I'm sorry, but everybody's not fine in this maudlin tale of a dad (Robert De Niro [8]) who just wants attention from his distant children, one of whom is played by Sam Rockwell. A disappointing downer that the cast should have all passed on.

Daniel Day-Lewis, Nine

It's hard to believe that Daniel Day-Lewis even has the capacity to appear in a less-than-amazing movie, but the 2009 musical Nine is that movie. It's not that we don't enjoy seeing Day-Lewis sing and dance, but something about it just feels wrong.

If you're not agreeing yet, then just watch as he sings in an Italian accent [9].

Denzel Washington, The Book of Eli

In this postapocalyptic drama, Denzel Washington [10] plays a blind man who has to protect the last Bible on earth while spouting biblical phrases and wasting his enemies with a samurai sword. Not exactly the same kind of material that got him nominations for films like Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Allison Janney, Tammy

Janney is a shoo-in to win best supporting actress this year in I, Tonya, just the latest in a career of excellent performances, but even she couldn't save this dreadful Melissa McCarthy comedy.

Christopher Plummer, Must Love Dogs

We love many romantic comedies, but the 2005 movie Must Love Dogs isn't one of them. The uninspired film pairs Diane Lane [11] and John Cusack as two divorced people trying to date again, and best supporting actor nominee Christopher Plummer plays Lane's father. The slow, unromantic movie doesn't do Plummer justice.


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