Jennifer Lopez opened up about the 2019 Oscar snub for her role in the film Hustlers. The movie was met with critical appeal and was a success during the 2019 awards season. Jennifer Lopez is the lead actress in the feature, as well as a producer, and was nominated for a Golden Globe. However, she didn't land an Academy Award nomination.
Lopez has had over thirty movies, over forty singles, eight studio albums and has managed to solidify herself as one of the artists to respect and take seriously in Hollywood. Hustlers was a change in the right direction for the actress – she managed to break through the stigma and stereotype of 'popstars acting poorly in films' by taking on a quality dramatic role and doing a fantastic job in it. Lopez was shortlisted and heavily campaigned for her first Oscar nomination, so naturally, it came as a surprise to everyone when she didn't make the list.
Lopez spoke to Allure about her infamous Oscar snub in 2019's Best Leading Actress category, revisiting the moment and opening up about her feelings. Lopez called the snub 'a sting.' She further explained it was strange to her that she didn't land an Academy Award nomination, even though she was on everyone's radar and got nominated for pretty much every other award. Here's a full quote from the actress:
I was talking about this the other day. [My production partner] Elaine [Goldsmith-Thomas] made a post where she listed all the things I had been nominated for and won that season,” says Lopez, referring to the post-Hustlers awards season. “And when it came to the Oscars, it was so obviously absent. It was a sting.
I was like, ‘Okay, when you’re supposedly in everybody else’s mind supposed to be nominated and you’re not, what does that mean? Is it really real? Are the other ones real and this one isn’t?’ It came to a point where I was like, ‘This is not why I do this. I don’t do this to have 10 Oscars sitting on my mantel or 20 Grammys.
Lopez says she is not in the business for the awards or the nominations, but rather her artistic fulfillment and development. In the full interview, the actress also spoke about how overwhelming everything was around Hustlers since she went from training for the role to filming to going on tour and then right back to filming another upcoming feature.
While the actress didn't land an Oscar nomination, her work in Hustlers is undoubtedly excellent and opens many doors for more dramatic roles. The pop star currently has three films in pre-production following Hustlers. It may be difficult to understand why she was snubbed for an Oscar nomination, but it seems like Lopez is handling it with grace. The additional nominations and awards she won for the film probably helped soften the blow of being overlooked by the Academy.
Source: Allure
