The 98th Academy Awards are right around the corner, and the nominees have been announced. As always, there are quite a few shocking snubs left out of these nominations. There are movies, actors, and filmmakers who deserve the nomination but are unfortunately left off the list. Here are just some of the biggest Oscar snubs of the year.

Wicked: For Good

The first Wicked was an Oscar darling, receiving 10 nominations and securing 2 wins. It was a fair assumption to expect at least some nominations for the second film. It being nominated for absolutely nothing is honestly rather bonkers. At the very least, it deserved to be nominated for Costume Design, Production Design, and Makeup and Hairstyling.

Ne Zha 2

I haven’t seen Ne Zha 2 yet, but I’ve been seeing buzz about it all year long since it was released. It’s been getting perfect scores from critics and was the highest-grossing animated film of 2025. Color me surprised to not see it nominated for Best Animated Feature after all the hype. It’s apparently because it wasn’t formally submitted for consideration, which is understandable but still a huge surprise after hearing all the buzz around it.

Weapons

Weapons earned one nomination for Amy Madigan’s Best Supporting Actress performance. While that is extremely deserved, it’s odd that it didn’t earn any other nominations. Julia Garner definitely deserved a nomination for Best Lead Actress, and the writing and directing also deserved Oscar nods. It’s a powerful story with fantastic visual metaphors that should have been recognized.

Rental Family

Brendan Fraser has proven his acting prowess with a Best Lead Actor win in the past for The Whale, and he should have been nominated again this year for Rental Family. It’s equally surprising to see such a powerful and emotional script miss out on the nomination. It’s one I think a lot of people expected to see make the list.

The Long Walk

The Long Walk is one of the most emotional and jaw-dropping films of 2025. With its important messages, impressive cinematography, and phenomenal performances, this should have been one of the major Oscar darlings of the year. Somehow, it didn’t get a single nomination, and that hurts just as much as the devastating moments in the movie itself.

Guillermo del Toro for Best Director

Guillermo del Toro is nominated for writing, which is deserved. Frankenstein earned a number of nominations, including for Best Picture. However, del Toro’s incredible directing wasn’t one of those nominations. After seeing how well shot it all is, that feels crazy to me.

Oscar Isaac

Similarly, Oscar Isaac didn’t get a Best Lead Actor nomination for his role as Victor Frankenstein. It’s always surprising when the lead actor in a Best Picture nominated film doesn’t get a nomination themselves. On top of that, Oscar Isaac gives a stellar performance, and it’s unfortunate that it wasn’t recognized.

Avatar: Fire and Ash for Best Picture

Avatar: Fire and Ash justifiably earned Oscar nominations for Best Visual Effects and Best Costume Design, but it missed out on the Best Picture nomination. The first two movies in the series were nominated for Best Picture, so it’s rather surprising to see this one passed up for it.

Paul Mescal

Hamnet scored 7 nominations this year, which is impressive. This includes Jessie Buckley for Best Lead Actress. Not nominating Paul Mescal for his performance when the story focuses on both his and Buckley’s characters feels weird. His character is vital to the movie, and his performance is as well.

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