The full list of nominations for this year's Academy Awards was recently released, and Aretha Franklin's family couldn't help but notice a glaring omission. Last year, the Queen of Soul's life story was told in the acclaimed biopic Respect with Jennifer Hudson portraying the late singer. Hudson's portrayal received widespread praise as the consensus among critics was that she totally nailed the role. She'd certainly fit right in with the other Best Actress nominees, but for whatever reason, Hudson and Respect didn't make the cut.
Among those feeling particularly disappointed with Hudson's lack of a nomination would be Franklin's family members. Per TMZ, Aretha's niece, Sabrina Owens, says she's disappointed about the Oscar snub because Hudson did "a fantastic job in the biopic" that's worthy of recognition. Owens also feels Aretha, who'd hand-picked Jennifer for the role while she was alive, would have agreed that Hudson deserved an Oscar nomination. Sabrina says that Franklin was heavily involved with the film's production, and as a perfectionist who took pride in her work, she would've liked to see Respect get Oscar recognition.
Brenda Franklin Corbit, Aretha's first cousin and former backup singer, has the same opinion. She says she's "heartbroken" about Hudson getting left out of the Best Actress race at the Academy Awards. Corbit feels the Academy made a big mistake as Hudson "poured her heart and soul into the role" and couldn't have done it any better. Additionally, Corbit says Aretha would've been "seriously upset about the exclusion because she definitely had Oscar on her mind" while working on the movie.
The Academy Also Came Under Fire For Other Snubs
Only so many names can be nominated, and there will always have to be certain picks left out in the cold. While Jennifer Hudson is more than deserving of the honor, the nominees are all solid choices. The names the Academy announced for Best Actress are Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye), Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter), Penélope Cruz (Parallel Mothers), Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos), and Kristen Stewart (Spencer).
The nominations have fans of other snubbed performers crying foul. There were many who similarly asked where Lady Gaga's name was after she was snubbed for her role in Ridley Scott's House of Gucci. Gaga had been granted nominations for BAFTA, the Critic's Choice Awards, SAG Awards, and Golden Globes, but was not up for the golden statue at the Academy Awards. She joins Licorice Pizza star Alana Haim as another actress who did outstanding work in 2021 that fans wanted to see get nominated for Best Actress.
While Jennifer Hudson was snubbed at the Oscars, the Franklin family at large still wants the actress to know that she made the Queen of Soul proud with her work in Respect. The family also considers Hudson to be one of their own. Even without an Oscar nomination, Hudson must certainly still be very proud of her performance with this kind of reaction from the Franklin family.