Just because Barbie was the only film you saw last year doesn’t mean it deserves an Oscar-Jessica Cullen-Entertainment – Metro

Look, I loved Barbie as much as the next person (Picture: Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros. Entertainment via AP)

When the Oscar nominations were announced on Tuesday, there were a few sure bets in the minds of 2023’s regular cinemagoers.

Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, and Poor Things were all expected to sweep. And sweep they did, with nominations across almost every major category.  

However, fans of one film took massive issue with the list. ‘What about Barbie?’, they exclaimed and angrily tweeted.

Despite the film being nominated for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song (twice), Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Supporting Actress (America Ferrera) and Best Supporting Actor (Ryan Gosling), Barbieheads were still not satisfied. 

They wanted Greta Gerwig for Best Director and Margot Robbie for Best Actress. They also saw Gosling’s nomination as a whole new level of irony to the film’s feminist message.

Look, I loved Barbie as much as the next person, but Gerwig’s pink box office hit hasn’t been ‘snubbed’.

I think this mass outrage stems from the fact everyone, even those who don’t tend to brave the movie theatres, saw Barbie.  

For many, it may have been their only big movie of the year. The thing is, there have been some truly fantastic films this year.

Oppenheimer was Nolan’s greatest masterpiece to date, Poor Things was a lovable oddball, and Killers of the Flower Moon gave us a collective of powerhouse performances. 

That’s not to say I think Barbie is completely undeserving.  

The Academy often seems to be allergic to having more than one female director in the running for Best Director (even though three of the Best Picture nominees this year were directed by women).  

If Barbie had to be nominated (nominated, not win) for anything, it should have been directing (Picture: Han Myung-Gu/WireImage)

It’s undeniable that this is a complete misstep at the expense of not only Greta Gerwig (whose imagination and unusual approach made the most consumerist movie of the year into something a lot more resonant than a simple studio product) but also for Celine Song, who directed one of my favourite movies last year, Past Lives.  

There’s nothing to excuse this, and frankly, if Barbie had to be nominated (nominated, not win) for anything, it should have been directing. 

But is Robbie’s performance as the titular toy really worth an Oscar nomination? Perfectly cast? Yes. Sincere? Completely. But anyone who’s seen Asteroid City knows that she can do a lot more with a lot less. Exposure is not equal to craft. 

Carey Mulligan is nominated for her role in Maestro (Picture: Jason McDonald/Netflix via AP)

I will only accept someone saying Robbie deserves a nomination if they have seen Nyad, Killers of the Flower Moon, Anatomy of a Fall, Maestro and Poor Things, and deem her performance above that of Bening, Gladstone, Huller, Mulligan and Stone. What makes Robbie more deserving?  

And yes, Ryan Gosling was unforgettable as Ken, but I don’t know if all the Kenergy in the world is enough to push him ahead of some genuinely unforgettable supporting performances this year.

Charles Melton, who received unprecedented praise for his role in May December, didn’t even get a nod.

May December didn’t get a nod(Picture: AP)

Despite a few missing nominations here or there, Gerwig’s Mattel venture has achieved something that many of the other nominations haven’t even come close to reaching in equal measure: a legacy.  

Honestly, I don’t think Barbie was ever really an awards contender to begin with. It was one of my favourite movie-going experiences of 2023, that’s for sure, but it’s not the ‘best movie’ of the year by a mile.  

I adore Greta Gerwig’s work, and I wish she had been nominated as a director. Because if helming one of the most beloved and highest-earning movies of recent years isn’t enough, then what is? Still, I truly believe that one day she’ll be an Oscar-winning director, but not for this. 

Above all, the biggest problem with the Barbie snub conversation is that it negates some of the most major talking points of this year’s Oscar race.  

The awards shouldn’t be so heavily applauded for doing something as basic and important as being inclusive, but because they have historically failed to do so, notable records are worth highlighting, too.  

Lily Gladstone, left, and Leonardo DiCaprio in a scene from Killers of the Flower Moon (Picture: Melinda Sue Gordon/Apple TV+ via AP)

And for many people, these are the moments that make the Oscars worth watching. 

Lily Gladstone has become the first Native American to be nominated for Best Actress – a record that shouldn’t be being broken this late in the game, but incredibly well-deserved.  

As mentioned earlier, three of the Best Picture nominees were directed by women, and Coleman Domingo is the second openly gay man in Oscar history to be nominated for playing a gay character. 

These nominations, and the many others this year, are completely valid and well-earned – with context that should be easily understood and appreciated even by those who didn’t see the movies in question.  

These nominations didn’t ‘steal’ a spot from Barbie simply by existing. 

Ultimately, these achievements are getting lost in the false controversy coming from an already incredibly successful and popular movie failing to sweep every category possible.  

Yes, Barbie was good and is worthy of being respected among its peers, but let’s not dilute the conversation. Not this year, when the race is perhaps the tightest it’s been in years. 

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk. 

Share your views in the comments below.

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