The newly released 2024 Oscar nominations have many angry, as Margot Robbie, who played Barbie in “Barbie,” did not get nominated for Actress in a Leading Role. People are also equally upset that Greta Gerwig, the director of the same film, was not nominated for Directing. This film grossed over $1.4 billion, making “Barbie” the highest-grossing film of 2023. Many are disappointed that Robbie and Gerwig were snubbed; especially since Ryan Gosling was nominated for Actor in a Supporting Role, who even called out the snub, emphasizing the two women’s hard work in bringing this film to life. The outrage has many questioning why the focus is away from those who did get nominated, a group populated by many POC.. 

While Gosling’s nomination proves the overall point of “Barbie,” it’s important to think about how impactful each nominee’s character was to its audience. Robbie’s portrayal of Barbie was admirable, touching and overall fantastic. However, compared to the other nominees for Actress in a Leading Role, her role might not have made an impressionable impact on those who voted for these nominations.

Let’s compare Emma Stone’s portrayal of Bella Baxter in “Poor Things” to Robbie’s portrayal of Barbie. Both had messages that advocated for female empowerment and autonomy. The difference is the contents of the message, how they make the audience feel and how they make them think. I found Stone’s portrayal of Baxter more touching because of its mature themes surrounding transformation in the female perspective, breaking free from society’s constraints on them. 

The message in “Barbie” was something I already knew, and personally wasn’t very thought-provoking. The perspective put within the film was something I’ve known about my experience as a woman since I was in my teens, and the film itself is targeted towards a teen/older kid audience. “Poor Things” is geared towards adults with its R-rating and delivers a more impactful message with its mature themes surrounding female empowerment. That for me, was more intriguing, as others found Stone’s performance provocative being a reason as to why she got nominated. All of the nominees under that category gave thought-provoking  performances that appealed to the given audience, and that might be the reason why Robbie got snubbed.

While it’s understandable why Robbie might have gotten snubbed, I still think that she deserved to be nominated for Actress in a Leading Role because her overall performance of Barbie was enjoyable. Although I didn’t resonate with the message as much as I did with “Poor Things,” she did an amazing job portraying the character. Additionally, I didn’t watch all the movies of the other nominees, so that gives a bigger reason as to why I would’ve liked to see her nominated. Not seeing Greta Gerwig nominated for her work in “Barbie” was shocking, especially seeing as though she has directed a lot of influential movies in the past,  so it was disappointing that her role wasn’t nominated for an Oscar. 

While Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig definitely deserved their flowers for the prominent roles they had in creating “Barbie,” why aren’t we celebrating the people who got nominated? This Oscars had so many nominations that are deserving, and frankly, history-making. The snub is taking away so much attention from these nominees, and this is a problem within itself. Lily Gladstone, nominee for Actress in a Leading Role, is the first Indigenous woman to be nominated for this category. This is huge, and holds great weight to those who are Indigenous because Gladstone’s nomination is very important for Indigenous representation not only at the Oscars but in the acting industry. Colman Domingo was the First Latino nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his impacting role in “Rustin.” History is in the making from these nominations, and these actors and actresses deserve the same amount of attention as the Oscars snub.

America Ferrera, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Danielle Brooks, three WOC, were nominated for Actress in a Supporting Role. “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was nominated for Animated Feature Film. “Killers of the Flower Moon” was nominated for cinematography. Celine Song was the first Asian woman nominated for Best Original Screenplay for “Past Lives.” These are important moments too, and should be recognized by netizens. These accomplishments are especially for watchers who are of color because representation matters to so many people who have experienced setbacks due to their identity. It is also refreshing as a person of color, to see people who look like me finally be recognized for hard work that their white counterparts always get praise for. I find the controversy a little ironic because I can list a million snubs that have happened to POC actors, actresses and directors, and it didn’t get nearly as much outrage. People are allowed to be upset obviously, but it would be nice to celebrate those who, rightfully so, earned their place on the nominations list.

No, people aren’t overreacting about Margot and Greta getting snubbed. However, people are so consumed by this misfortune that they take focus away from the many actors and actresses deserving of an Oscar nomination. “Barbie” has been nominated for Costume Design, Music (Original Song), Best Picture, Production Design and Writing (Adapted Screenplay). It is not like the Oscars did a disservice to the entire film. While it’s disappointing, we still have to recognize the nominated individuals, especially those who made history. 2023 brought us so many amazing movies and character portrayals, and it is important to celebrate the diversity of those who contributed to its colorful variety.