Oscar Nominee America Ferrera ‘Incredibly Disappointed’ by Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie Snubs

While America Ferrera is still processing her first-ever Oscar nomination for playing Gloria in Barbie (“I can’t even believe that this is real,” she tells Variety), the actress is also vocalizing her disappointment over the film’s star and director getting overlooked by the Academy.

“I was incredibly disappointed that they weren’t nominated,” Ferrera says of Margot Robbie, who many expected would get a nod for Best Actress, and Greta Gerwig, who was unexpectedly absent from the Best Director category.

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Ferrera argues that Gerwig “has done just about everything that a director could do to deserve it. Creating this world, and taking something that didn’t have inherent value to most people and making it a global phenomenon. It feels disappointing to not see her on that list.”

Those who did score Best Director nominations include Justine Triet (Anatomy of a Fall), Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon), Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer), Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things) and Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest).

Robbie’s “truly unbelievable” achievement in the movie’s title role is also deserving of a nod, Ferrera believes. “One of the things about Margot as an actress is how easy she makes everything look,” she says. “Perhaps people got fooled into thinking that the work seems easy, but Margot is a magician as an actress in front of the screen, and it was one of the honors of my career to get to witness her pull off the amazing performance she did. She brings so much heart and humor and depth and joy and fun to the character. In my book, she’s a master.”

Her would-be category includes Annette Bening (Nyad), Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon), Sandra Hüller (Anatomy of a Fall), Carey Mulligan (Maestro) and Emma Stone (Poor Things).

Despite these perceived snubs, Barbie received a total of eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor for Ryan Gosling, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design and two Best Original Song nods for “I’m Just Ken” and “What Was I Made For.”

7 TV Stars Who Scored Oscar Nominations

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Ferrera, nominated for Best Supporting Actress in Barbie, was one of seven bonafide TV stars who became first-time Oscar nominees this year. That illustrious list also includes Danielle Brooks, Sterling K. Brown, Colman Domingo, Cillian Murphy, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Jeffrey Wright.

Do you feel that Robbie and Gerwig deserved individual nominations? Drop a comment with your thoughts on the Oscars’ Barbie situation below.

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