After being shut out of the Oscars for his previous film, acclaimed writer and director Jordan Peele seemed poised to return to the Academy stage with his newest movie Nope. The socially aware film follows OJ Haywood, Jr. (Daniel Kaluuya) and his sister Em Haywood (Keke Palmer) on an alien chase big enough for the 21st-century spectacle as they attempt to capture on camera what many people reserve for the imagination.
To elevate the sheer scale of the action picture, Nope was afforded a blockbuster budget with the support of an all-star cast and crew fortified with past success. The film was positioned as one of the most anticipated of the year and fulfilled that promise by topping the box office during its opening weekend. It certainly had all the ingredients necessary for Oscar appeal, yet Peele’s film ended up in more snubbed articles than on any nomination shortlists.
To say the snub is undeserved is certainly an understatement, for Nope boasts a resume comparable to most of this year’s nominees. Daniel Kaluuya was praised by IndieWire for how his “eyes remain some of Hollywood’s most special effects”. Brandon Perea — who plays nosey Geek Squad associate Angel Torres — shines in a breakout supporting role and longtime star Keke Palmer was expected to receive a first-time nomination after giving an explosively entertaining performance. Acclaimed cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema, most well-known for his frequent collaborations with Christopher Nolan, developed a “pioneering new way of shooting day-for-night” by utilizing IMAX film and infrared digital cameras.
Combined with Jordan Peele’s unique directorial vision and his infinitely imaginative screenplay, there are sound arguments in support of nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. The film’s questionable omission from Oscar night has left fans confused, and many wondering why Nope didn't make the list.
Is It A Genre Issue?
It’s well-documented that the Academy tends to overlook achievements in the horror genre and Peele has already experienced this firsthand. Despite receiving four nominations and one win for his directorial debut Get Out, Peele failed to gain recognition for his sophomore film Us. While Get Out was heralded for its sharp social commentary, Us suffered from being more scary than satirical as it was surprisingly missing from the end-of-the-year awards ceremony, with Lupita Nyong’o notably snubbed after a harrowing double performance as Adelaide Wilson and her tethered clone Red.
However, Nope seems to share more commonalities with a blockbuster like Jaws than it does with a horror movie like Us. Peele infuses his out-of-the-box thinking with an exciting adventure element unseen in his first two features. The sweeping low-angle shots and Kaluuya’s masterful wordless performance creates a suspenseful sensation that is both Steven Spielberg and John Ford. With the Oscars becoming more accepting of commercial films (see: Black Panther and Joker), it doesn’t seem unwieldy for the Academy to recognize blockbuster films with more substance and style, especially with Avatar: The Way of Water, Elvis, and Top Gun: Maverick all receiving Best Picture nods.
Is It A Representation Issue?
With the shadows of #OscarSoWhite looming in the recent past and the Golden Globes continuing to struggle with their own representation issues, the Academy has undoubtedly been proactive in championing diversity and representation in its nomination process. But this hasn’t gone without criticism. After consecutive years of women winning Best Director, this year's nominees for the award lack a significant representation of women or people of color. The same holds true for the Best Picture and Best Screenplay awards with Women Talking (Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay) and Living (Best Adapted Screenplay) being the only nominations for women (Sarah Polley) or people of color (Kazuo Ishiguro) respectively.
While the Acting categories are creating headlines with historical nominations, Oscar-worthy performances from Black actors continue to be ignored by the Academy. Like Nyong’o and Jennifer Hudson in the past and Palmer, Danielle Deadwyler (Till), and Viola Davis (The Woman King) this year, Black filmmakers have repeatedly been disrespected in recent memory. Who can forget the seeming inevitability of a posthumous Oscar win for Chadwick Boseman being squandered by a shocking misdirection to Anthony Hopkins? Or what about the mishandling of the Best Picture award at the 89th Academy Awards ceremony where La La Land was mistakenly announced instead of Moonlight?
Black filmmakers have historically been the butt of the joke when it comes to Oscar flubs and snubs, and Jordan Peele’s Nope hoped to flip that script this year with a lengthy list of award-worthy performances. With an impressive track record at the box office and strong support from critics and audiences alike, it doesn’t look like Peele will stop swinging for the fence. Hopefully, Peele’s next project will garner the recognition it deserves.