Entertainment

Caitriona Balfe, Lady Gaga and Denis Villeneuve among Oscar snubs and surprises

The Irish actress missed out on recognition for Belfast.
The Irish actress missed out on recognition for Belfast.

Irish star Caitriona Balfe has missed out on an Oscar nomination in one of the biggest snubs in the acting categories this year.

The actress had been widely expected to land a supporting actress nod for her role in Sir Kenneth Branagh’s autobiographical film Belfast, which has scored seven Oscar nominations.

Instead Balfe’s co-star Dame Judi Dench was a surprise inclusion in the contenders.

Belfast European premiere – BFI London Film Festival 2021
Dame Judi Dench picked up a surprise nod (Ian West/PA)

Lady Gaga had also been widely tipped to land a best actress nomination for her performance in House Of Gucci, but missed out, with nods instead going to Jessica Chastain for The Eyes Of Tammy Faye and Penelope Cruz for Parallel Mothers, whose inclusion had looked less certain.

Newcomers Rachel Zegler, the star of West Side Story, and Licorice Pizza’s Alana Haim also missed out on a spot among the contenders for the gong.

House of Gucci UK Premiere – London
Lady Gaga missed out on a best actress nod (Ian West/PA)

There was also disappointment for Leonardo DiCaprio, who failed to land a best actor nod for Don’t Look Up, despite recognition from Bafta last week, while Bradley Cooper and Ben Affleck both missed out on supporting nominations for Licorice Pizza and The Tender Bar despite strong showings and precursor events.

Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Dune landed ten nominations from the Academy, but they did not include a best director nod for the French Canadian filmmaker, who also missed out on recognition from Bafta last week.

The 94th Oscars will take place on March 27 in Los Angeles.