SubscribeOSCARS POLL - VOTE: Who was the sorest loser?
My journo pal Tariq Khan is a shrewd Oscarologist who can rattle off the names of every past contender in any category. I asked him to apply his amazing recall powers to giving us his list of 10 sorest losers since 1990. Below is text by Tariq. Do you agree? Vote in our poll. Note that some names you might expect to find here are missing, like Eddie Murphy ("Dreamgirls"), who reportedly stormed out of the ceremony after he lost, even refusing to stick around to see his "Dreamgirls" costars perform. Tariq based his list upon what reax we see on the TV screen as soon as winners were announced. At that point, Murphy was caught smiling politely and even clapping when Alan Arkin's name was announced.
1.) Samuel L. Jackson, best supporting actor nominee of 1994 for "Pulp Fiction" — losing to Martin Landau for "Ed Wood." I give Mr. Jackson the top spot because he's the only nominee I've ever seen say the "s" word when he lost. It was quite visible. Surely he knew that he would lose to Landau, who had won virtually every other award leading up to the Oscars. Forget about what they call a Big Mac or Quarter Pounder with Cheese in French — what do they call a sore loser? A sore loser royale?
2.) Bill Murray, best-actor nominee of 2003 for "Lost in Translation" — losing to Sean Penn for "Mystic River." He looked devastated before Nicole Kidman even opened the envelope, and his expression didn't change when she called out Penn's name. Afterwards, host Billy Crystal asked Murray not to leave, and the audience gave him a nice round of applause, to console him.
3.) Denzel Washington, best-actor nominee of 1999 for "The Hurricane" — losing to Kevin Spacey for "American Beauty." Poor Denzel. He looked like a lock in January when he went home with the Golden Globe, but the controversy surrounding the film and its shut-out in all other Oscar categories allowed Spacey to leap ahead of him in the final weeks of the race. You could see Denzel's heart sink when Gwyneth Paltrow named Spacey the victor. Denzel turned to see Spacey's reaction, gently clapping but unable to muster up a smile. Talk about a hurricane victim.
4.) Diane Ladd, best supporting actress nominee of 1991 for "Rambling Rose" — losing to Mercedes Ruehl for "The Fisher King." Ladd hoped the third time would be the charm. She clutched a red rose as her name was announced as a nominee. When Joe Pesci declared Ruehl the winner, Ladd looked pissed. I mean, she was dressed in white, but you could see the red.
CLICK HERE to Continue Reading the List of OSCAR'S SOREST LOSERS!
5.) Ian McKellen, best supporting actor nominee of 2001 for "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" — losing to Jim Broadbent for "Iris." McKellen had put on a good face when he lost to Roberto Benigni for best actor of 1998. But this time, he sat expressionless as he lost to fellow Brit Broadbent. He presented on stage with Maggie Smith shortly afterwards, and he still appeared to be steaming. (However, later in the show, the camera showed him being consoled by a much younger man holding his hand.)
6.) Kathy Bates, best supporting actress nominee of 2002 for "About Schmidt" — losing to Catherine Zeta-Jones for "Chicago." Okay, so maybe she wasn't so much more sore as she was confused. When presenter Sean Connery opened the envelope, he simply said "Catherine," referring to Mrs. Michael Douglas. (Connery starred with her in 1999's "Entrapment," so the two probably had some sort of bond.) When Bates heard Connery call out the first name only, she looked dumbfounded, as if to say "Catherine who???" Bates must have thought that Connery might have been referring to her (although her full name is actually Kathleen.) She turned in the direction where all the exuberant "Chicago" nominees were seated, and the camera cut to the beaming, pregnant Catherine Z.
7.) Robert Duvall, best-actor nominee of 1997 for "The Apostle," losing to Jack Nicholson for "As Good As It Gets." Duvall looked down as Frances McDormand opened the envelope, as if quietly praying for a second Oscar. (He had won for "Tender Mercies" 14 years earlier.) When Nicholson won for the third time, Duvall looked like he had completely lost all faith.
8.) Lauren Bacall, best supporting actress nominee of 1996 for "The Mirror Has Two Faces" — losing to Juliette Binoche for "The English Patient." Frontrunner Bacall told Joan Rivers on the red carpet that "There are always surprises, and I'm waiting for someone else's name to be called out." Unfortunately for Bacall, she was right. Kevin Spacey looked right at her before he opened the envelope, and Bacall looked like she had been slapped when Binoche's name was called. Bacall did manage to clap, while her son seated next to her visibly gasped. Later in the telecast, the camera turned to Bacall, still looking like she wanted to kill herself - though she did seem to come back to life when the Coen brothers won the original screenplay Oscar for "Fargo."
9.) Judy Davis, best supporting actress nominee of 1992 for "Husbands and Wives" — losing to Marisa Tomei for "My Cousin Vinny." One of the biggest Oscar upsets in history, though Davis might have been even more upset when presenter Jack Palance identified her as being English. (Davis is Australian.) You could see her quietly say "I'm not English, I'm not English," as she shrugged. When Palance declared Tomei the winner, you could see Davis raise her eyebrows in shock. Fellow nominees Joan Plowright and Vanessa Redgrave actually laughed at Tomei's win, while Miranda Richardson seemed to think that Palance was starting to say her name. (Marisa, Miranda - they start out sounding the same.)
10.) Geoffrey Rush, best-actor nominee of 2000 for "Quills" — losing to Russell Crowe for "Gladiator." This is one that I don't quite get. Rush probably knew that he had zero chance of winning, but whom was he rooting for? He looked very unhappy when Hilary Swank announced Crowe's name. Rush's wife turned to him as if to say, "Oh well, too bad." But really, whom did he want to win?
(Photos: Miramax / Focus Features)
Talia Shire was very devastated when Louise Fletcher declared Faye Dunaway as the Best Lead Actress of 1976, I thought she was going to puke or something
Posted by: shinnggo | April 30, 2009 at 07:33 AM
Low Brow,
Before you insult others in regard to "improperly" using grammar, you should consult your Strunk & White.
The subject of both sentences is "he"; therefore, in order to ascertain whether "who" or "whom" should be used, rearrange the sentence, putting the subject in its place:
He was rooting for whom?
As for the other sentence, there are different ways it could be written (I'll let you figure out said ways).
In regard to grammar itself, there are many writers who use the rules differently; some writers follow them closely, while others sometimes disregard them.
Some writers (Cormac McCarthy, Kurt Vonnegut) despise semi-colons; others (John Updike and William Faulkner come to mind) have used said punctuation to create dense, elongated sentences. The same may be said for "who" or "whom," as well as a plethora of other rules, some of which have fallen out of style.
Do understand that my intention is not to be rude; however, before you write a message in which you insult others, perhaps you'd do well to consider exactly what it is that you are writing.
Posted by: John Zulovitz | January 17, 2008 at 01:20 PM
"You (in the US) don't remember the sorest loser of all, Fernanda Montenegro, who said to brazilian press that she lost the Oscar to a 'blonde bimbo' (in the case, it was Gwyneth Paltrow) because 'she was old and the winner was beautiful'. Afterward she won the Oscar.. in a brazilian soap opera. Consolation prize?"
Ok, being Brazilian myself I can tell this was completely made up! Montenegro has on more than one occasion referred very gracefully to her nomination, often mentioning that she felt honored Central Station had fared so well internationally and that the Academy had honored her. Not once has she criticized Gwyneth Paltrow (even though, she WAS an undeserving winner), and referring to her as a blond bimbo is absolutely in disconnection with Montenegro's polite and reticent behavior.
The "Oscar" she won in a telenovela scene was a mere well-intended homage by a long time friend and admirer, not meant in any way to criticize the Academy for its choice.
Stop making up crap about a seasoned, gracious actress. It is not like Montenegro has Oscar expectations, she does not belong to the Hollywood industry, such an award bears little relevance to her career. It would even be illogical for her to behave in such manner!
Posted by: Lila | December 18, 2007 at 06:11 PM
I clearly remember Eddie Murphy muttering something that looked a whole lot like "MotherF#@*er" when he lost. I think that beats Samuel Jackson. At least Sam didn't run away like a cry-baby.
Posted by: TB | December 10, 2007 at 08:41 AM
The medias are also responsible for entertaining the idea of non-deserving winners. I remember Binoche campaining for Julia Roberts when she was nominated for Chocolat. Indeed, Binoche did not steal her Oscar which could have gone to other nominees but certainly not to Bacall who was just so-so (how she got a GG and other awards is beyond me).
Posted by: Chirp | December 02, 2007 at 04:02 PM
1969 (1970) was the first year the academy had the 5 way split screen. Even after nearly 40 years, I can still recallt the face Sylvia Miles made when she lost to the absent Goldie Hawn. THAT had to be the classic. It was even worse than Kirkland & THE Exorcist gang. Even years later Sylvia was still grumbling about her loss.
Re: Tom Cruise in BORN. If you recall, the minute Lewis' name was announced, the camera immediately panned away from Tom but the other 3 cameras remaind on the other nominees.
Such was the power of...Pat Kingsley!!
Posted by: Barrie | November 29, 2007 at 11:27 AM
I remembered vividly watching Bill and Burt on screen when their name was not called out but someone else. Those 2 faces could sink the Titanic alone I tell ya!
My pick is Bill Murray his reaction was simply priceless..
Posted by: Armand | November 28, 2007 at 09:53 PM
John Huston was all smiles at the 58th Oscars when the nominees for Best Director were read out. It seemed he thought he was a lock to win for Prizzi's Honor, perhaps because he was old and not long to live. You should have seen his expression change when Sydney Pollack was announced as the winner. I thought he was going to have a heart attack.
Posted by: Shadow | November 28, 2007 at 09:32 PM
Wow, a lot of making mountains out of molehills here.
And this:
"Forget about what they call a Big Mac or Quarter Pounder with Cheese in French — what do they call a sore loser? A sore loser royale? "
May have been one of the lamest, unfunny things I've read in a long time. Thanks for dealing irreperable damage to all our IQs.
Posted by: Cody | November 28, 2007 at 09:16 PM
Well... I think Bill Murray was completely right at being angry at not winning the Oscar.
Sean Penn gave an overacted, one-dimensional, boring performance; Bill Murray gave one of the best performances of all time.
Posted by: Bernardo S | November 28, 2007 at 08:37 PM
Paul Thomas Anderson was nominated for Best Screenplay for Magnolia and he lost to Alan Ball for American Beauty. He's the only person I remember actually turning TO the camera and making a sarcastic "surprised" face. Like some kid just stole his lunch money. Fiona Apple was with him and kept making weird sad faces to the camera. They even cut back to her at one point because she was making grimaces.
Posted by: Roberto | November 28, 2007 at 08:33 PM
In 1996 Richard Dreyfuss, best actor nominee for Mr Holland Opus losing to Nicolas Cage for Leaving Las Vegas. He looked quite devastated that time.
Posted by: Romy | November 28, 2007 at 06:54 PM
"but whom was he rooting for? ... whom did he want to win"
One of my pet delights is when people incorrectly use the word "whom" in an attempt to make it look like they know grammar.
Posted by: Low Brow | November 28, 2007 at 06:09 PM
Annie Proulx had every right to complain. Crash was a terrible movie. Like another poster said, "Guess which movie will be remembered in 30 years"...Judy Davis was hilarious her year-anyone BUT Marisa should have won.
Posted by: Jason | November 28, 2007 at 04:43 PM
A SORE LOSER ROYALE??? OH MY GOD THAT'S FUCKING HILARIOUS!
Posted by: Joe | November 28, 2007 at 04:19 PM
Eddie Murphy hands down
Posted by: Ed L | November 28, 2007 at 04:04 PM
Sigourney Weaver for GORILLAS IN THE MISTS and WORKING GIRL. SHe was the first two time nominee to go home empty handed. She just GLARED in the general direction of Jodie Foster when Jodie was announced. No clapping, no smile, nothing. Just disappointment, embarrassment and disgust.
Posted by: Ken | November 28, 2007 at 03:36 PM
U definitly forgot the worst ever , Eddie Murphey. Also Samuel had a right to be pissed, like he really lost to Martin Landau, please stop giving out awards to old fuckers because they are old fuckers.
Posted by: Josh | November 28, 2007 at 03:10 PM
The one I will always remember is when Martin Scorcese deservedly lost out to Roman Polanski for the best director Oscar. I have NEVER seen a more forced-congragulatory smile in all my life. Remember the ridiculous extent to which the Weinsteins campaigned to get him a nomination? They took out full-page ads in papers. Oh well, he won one eventually.
A sore loser I believe to be completely in the right was Sidney Lumet. I am almost as bewildered as he is that Rocky beat out Network for Best Picture in 1977.
Posted by: Alec | November 28, 2007 at 03:10 PM
I completely agree with Anwar - simple disappointment now is considered being a poor sport? Isn't disappointment at losing a big award normal? I was hoping for great Faith-Hill-at-the-CMA's freakouts on this list, but this list is worse than an E! special.
Posted by: Ethan Kutinsky | November 28, 2007 at 02:42 PM
Ang Lee and the Brokeback Mountain people losing "Best Movie" to Crash
Posted by: H_E_D | November 28, 2007 at 02:35 PM
go back even further and look at Ellen Bursntein face when she lost to Glenda Jackson..I think she said shit
Posted by: Anwar Zraikat | November 28, 2007 at 01:57 PM
I'm sorry, but I can't believe this gripping article is largely based on who "looked" mad or upset after losing. Really... That's how you determine who was a sore loser? I'm sure you've had far worse reactions after losing a game of Tetris. All the public saw of Bill Murray's reaction was his teary-eyed smile after Billy Crystal's reassurance. Unless you have more to add to that other than the look on his face BEFORE the announcement was made, then I can't see what makes him such a bad person. I know you're not going to allow this to be posted for the public to see; I just want you to get this message.
Posted by: Ted E. | November 28, 2007 at 11:35 AM
These comments are as hilarious as the article. You're all winners ;)
Posted by: Nan | November 28, 2007 at 09:49 AM
What about Burt Reynolds losing to Robin Williams for Best Supporting Actor of 1997? He looked like he was going to implode even hanging his head. Reynolds told James Lipton on Inside the Actor's Studio years later that he hoped God would tell him at the Pearly Gates, "You shoulda won!". Talk about sore.
Posted by: Don Lamb | November 28, 2007 at 09:39 AM