Arturo Holmes // FilmMagic

fifteen controversial Oscar wins—and how they've aged

The most common source of controversy over Oscar winners is that viewers believe at that place were better contenders that yr. While the University Awards can exist criticized as predictable by viewers, some award winners pulled upsets that put the voting process past the University into incertitude. Awards flavour campaigning has been prevalent in contempo decades, leading the cynical to believe that the Oscars are given out equally a consequence of producers shaking easily with voters behind the scenes rather than objective quality.

Personal factors counterbalance in on observers' unease with Oscar winners too, like tumultuous production drama, misdeeds by actors or filmmakers, or controversial public statements. These Oscar wins have spurred discussions of separating the artist and the fine art, which was the case at the 2022 ceremony. At the 94th Academy Awards, Will Smith took domicile the prize for Best Histrion for his performance in "King Richard" as the titular Richard Williams, the male parent and longtime coach of tennis superstars Venus and Serena. Smith's acting had earned him acclaim in the months leading upwardly to the awards, merely during the ceremony, before the All-time Actor winner was announced, Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock who'd made a joke at the expense of Smith's married woman, Jada Pinkett Smith. The show went on, and Smith apologized during his acceptance voice communication, merely the fallout came in the weeks after. Smith ultimately resigned from the Academy and was banned from attending the Oscars for the next decade.

While Smith'south win was immediately met with backfire, other Oscar wins may not have been controversial at the time just become questionable in retrospect. Sometimes the wrongdoings of individuals involved in decorated films are later unearthed or are resurfaced after such a win. Meanwhile, other films tend to age poorly with audiences due to changing social norms in the present day compared to dissimilar cultural standards in the past. Stacker revisited some of the most controversial Oscar wins in the history of the Oscars. Continue reading to learn more well-nigh the most highly criticized wins, and how they've aged.

You may also like: 100 best dramas of all fourth dimension

one / 15

Frazer Harrison // Getty Images

2019: 'Bohemian Rhapsody' wins Best Editing

The Freddie Mercury and Queen biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody" was already entering the Oscars with several controversies, including the firing of manager Bryan Singer after he was accused of sexual assail and the film'due south perceived lack of attention to Mercury's sexuality and the larger AIDS crisis. Upon the release of the concluding picture, one particular scene with the members of Queen speaking to their manager went viral for a high number of erratic cuts. The film'south nomination for All-time Editing sparked mockery, which increased when the moving-picture show went on to win; even the moving-picture show's editor John Ottman doesn't believe that the flick is his all-time work.

[Pictured: John Ottman, winner of Best Motion-picture show Editing for "Bohemian Rhapsody."]

2 / 15

Jason Merritt // Getty Images

2013: Ang Lee wins All-time Managing director for 'Life of Pi'

Critics and pundits predicted Ben Affleck would be honored with a All-time Managing director nomination for his well-received work in "Argo." However, the role player-managing director was surprisingly absent-minded from the list of nominations. Instead, the winner of that year's bays was Ang Lee, who had won the same accolade for "Brokeback Mountain," this time winning for "Life of Pi." The surrealist survival motion-picture show had already caused a stir for the defalcation of the film's visual effects studio Rhythm & Hues, and this was seen as a symptom of a large problem inside the furnishings industry. Adding insult to injury to the picture show'due south visual effects artists was the lack of gratitude for the visitor in Lee'south voice communication for his Best Director award.

3 / 15

1986: 'Out of Africa' wins Best Picture

With a managing director with the pedigree of Sydney Pollack and stars like Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, "Out of Africa" seemingly had all the correct ingredients for an Oscar-worthy motion-picture show. Just upon release, the romantic drama film concluded up with more of a lukewarm reception due to a long running fourth dimension and for Redford's performance. Even today, critics are baffled past how "Out of Africa" took the superlative spot that night, especially over Steven Spielberg'southward adaptation of "The Color Purple."

You may also like: Steven Spielberg films ranked from worst to first

4 / xv

Jack Rollins & Charles H. Joffe Productions

1978: 'Annie Hall' wins Best Picture over 'Star Wars'

The space opera movie "Star Wars" (retroactively renamed as "Star Wars: Episode IV—A New Promise") by George Lucas came into the University Awards with a lot of momentum. "Star Wars" won several technical Academy Awards, but what many believe is one of the most influential films of all time lost to Woody Allen'due south "Annie Hall." While the archetype film is still highly regarded, gimmicky filmmakers like James Cameron have argued that the win supports the notion that the Academy does not like genre pictures. "Annie Hall" is, however, the exceptionally rare one-act to win Best Picture, a category that overwhelmingly goes to serious dramas. The past few years have too chosen attention to sexual misconduct in the pic industry, with old allegations against Woody Allen brought up yet once more when discussing whatever of his work.

5 / 15

1971: George C. Scott declines Best Actor for 'Patton'

In an unprecedented move, role player George C. Scott declined an laurels for Best Actor for his work as George S. Patton in the movie "Patton." While Scott's work in the moving picture was highly praised, with his opening monologue going on to be a memorable and iconic scene, Scott disliked the awards process, already warning the University months in advance to non nominate him. Despite this, Scott—who didn't show up at the ceremony—was nominated and won.

You may too like:The all-time streaming services in 2021

six / 15

Kevin Winter // Getty Images

2017: 'Moonlight' wins Best Picture after presenter flub

The win for Barry Jenkins' coming-of-age drama "Moonlight" wasn't peculiarly controversial, but rather how the win during the televised ceremony came to exist. Initially, presenters Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty accidentally appear the winner of All-time Picture to be the musical film "La La Land." However, that was the result of a mixup by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, who was in accuse of tallying up the votes and handing envelopes to presenters. "La La Land" producer Jordan Horowitz appear the real result to the confused audience. The musical picture show had been previously predicted to exist the winner but was criticized for its whitewashing of American jazz.

7 / xv

Frazer Harrison // Getty Images

2019: 'Green Book' wins Best Picture

The Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali-starring movie "Green Book," based on a truthful story, had already received extensive criticism earlier the Oscars rolled around. The family of Ali'southward character, jazz pianist Don Shirley, condemned the film, which was produced by Nick Vallelonga, the real-life son of Mortensen's character Frank Vallelonga. Director Peter Farrelly, who was accused of sexually inappropriate pranks while making previous films, was also criticized for what viewers interpreted as a "white savior" narrative. Immediately subsequently the film's win, "BlackKklansman" director Fasten Lee attempted to tempest out of the ceremony in outrage.

8 / 15

Selznick International Pictures

1940: Hattie McDaniel wins All-time Supporting Actress for 'Gone With the Air current'

Actress Hattie McDaniel made film history by becoming the commencement black American to win an Academy Honour, winning for her role as "Mammy" in "Gone With the Air current." While the award was an honor, McDaniel had to face racism and segregation. McDaniel was only allowed into the ceremony upon the intervention of the film's producers. Even then, McDaniel was seated away from the residuum of the creative team at a segregated tabular array, making this celebrated win an instance of racism.

9 / 15

1990: 'Driving Miss Daisy' wins Best Picture

Unusual for the Best Picture show category, 1990 winner "Driving Miss Daisy" did not even receive a nomination for Best Director, making the win an odd 1 out, specially against competition that included "Dead Poets Society," "Field of Dreams," and "My Left Foot." Today, the picture show's depiction of race relations is considered to exist lowkey, safe, and derivative, with retrospectives questioning why Fasten Lee's highly charged "Do the Correct Thing" from the same year was not even nominated for Best Pic in the first place. "Driving Miss Daisy" has been likened many times over to the more than recent but also controversial "Green Volume."

ten / 15

1973: Marlon Brando declines Best Actor for 'The Godfather'

Famed actor Marlon Brando had previously won the Academy Award for All-time Actor for his operation in "On the Waterfront," but took a unlike approach with his win for "The Godfather" in the wake of the Wounded Genu incident. Instead of accepting the honour for his office as Vito Corleone in-person, Brando sent Apache actress and activist Sacheen Littlefeather, who gave a speech in Brando'south place to denote his intention to decline the award for "poor treatment of Native Americans in the pic industry." Littlefeather received a mix of cheers and boos from the audition. However, the incident is still looked back upon as a significant moment in recognizing indigenous rights in the U.s.a..

Y'all may likewise like: Longest-running Tv set serial

11 / 15

1995: 'Forrest Gump' wins Best Picture over 'Pulp Fiction'

Quentin Tarantino'southward "Pulp Fiction" was a counterculture hit that inspired fervor and several copycat films in the years to follow, and it was an obvious favorite at the Academy Awards. While the film won Best Original Screenplay, "Pulp Fiction" lost to "Forrest Gump," a film well-nigh a slow-witted man and his participation in several American historical events. Both films are still loved and referenced continuously to this day, but many cinephiles complaining the loss of the edgier "Pulp Fiction" to the more sentimental "Forrest Gump."

12 / 15

2003: Roman Polanski wins Best Manager for 'The Pianist'

When Roman Polanski won the University Award for Best Managing director with "The Pianist," he did not walk up on stage to take the trophy; in fact, Polanski was not in the U.s.a. at all, every bit stepping pes in the U.Southward. would take resulted in his arrest. Even after his guilty plea for statutory rape, Polanski'south peers in the filmmaking community supported him at the time. In the wake of Time's Up and Me Too, nonetheless, Polanski's work and accolades have been reexamined. The University of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences expelled Polanski from its membership in 2018.

13 / fifteen

Frazer Harrison // Getty Images

2017: Casey Affleck wins Best Actor for 'Manchester by the Sea'

Actress Brie Larson handed Casey Affleck his University Honor for Best Role player, but many observed that she did not applaud for his win. This was seen every bit Larson, who portrayed a sexual attack victim in "Room," silently protesting Affleck, who was defendant of sexual harassment on the prepare of his motion-picture show "I'm Nevertheless Here." Affleck dropped out of presenting in the following year's Oscar ceremony.

14 / 15

HECTOR MATA/AFP // Getty Images

1999: 'Shakespeare in Love' wins All-time Picture over 'Saving Private Ryan'

Steven Spielberg's war drama "Saving Private Ryan" is considered by critics and viewers to exist non only one of the best war films of all time but one of the greatest films menstruum. Imagine their surprise when period romantic-comedy-drama "Shakespeare in Dear" pulled an upset win for the about prestigious film prize. The win is attributed to producer Harvey Weinstein's aggressive campaign for the film, which has set the tone for Oscar candidature since then. But the win didn't age well due to the accusations of rape and sexual harassment toward Weinstein that garnered much attention in 2017.

15 / 15

Vince Bucci // Getty Images

2005: 'Crash' wins Best Motion picture over 'Brokeback Mount'

The same-sex dearest story "Brokeback Mount," which starred Jake Gyllenhaal and the late Heath Ledger, had both disquisitional and fiscal success and became an early on favorite to win the All-time Pic award. To the stupor of many, the ensemble motion picture "Crash" pulled an upset win, prompting discussion for years after, particularly about whether the Academy was reluctant to laurels a film that featured gay protagonists. The win is oftentimes remembered equally i of the Academy's "biggest mistakes," with the film's depiction of race relations considered now more than ever to be outdated and based on stereotypes. The film'due south director Paul Haggis even considers the film to be unworthy of the honor.

You may too like: 50 best space movies of all time

Trending At present