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Greta Gerwig attends the 25th Annual Critics’ Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on January 12, 2020 in Santa Monica, California.
Matt Winkelmeyer
Only five women have ever been nominated for best director at the Academy Awards. On Monday, that number remained the same.
The slate of 2020 Oscar contenders for the directing prize were Martin Scorsese (“The Irishman”), Todd Phillips (“Joker”), Sam Mendes (“1917”), Quentin Tarantino (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”) and Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”), five incredibly talented male directors.
There’s no doubt that their nominations are well-deserved. Scorsese, Mendes and Tarantino are highly regarded in the industry, but the lack of female directors has been a sore spot for many in recent years.
“Congratulations to those men,” Issa Rae (“Insecure”) said after announcing the nominees for best director on Monday.
In the Academy Award’s 92-year history, only five women have made it onto the ballot — Lina Wertmuller (1976’s “Seven Beauties”), Jane Campion (1993’s “The Piano”), Sofia Coppola (2003’s “Lost in Translation”), Kathryn Bigelow (2009’s “The Hurt Locker”) and Greta Gerwig (2017’s “Lady Bird”). Bigelow is the only one to actually take home the prize.
This year, several female directors could have snagged a nomination. Gerwig, whose “Little Women” received six nods, was a top contender heading into the nominations.
Lulu Wang (“The Farewell”), Marielle Heller (“A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”), Lorene Scarfaria (“Hustlers”) and Alma Har’el (“Honey Boy”) were also snubbed. Heller was also snubbed in 2019 when “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” failed to garner a directing nomination.
Wang’s “The Farewell,” which scored numerous nominations at the Golden Globes and led to an acting award for star Awkwafina, was shut out from all Oscar categories.