Oscar winners are a huge deal. Many actors and filmmakers dream of making it to that coveted Oscar Winners list. But these actors just decided to flip the Academy the bird.
George C. Scott Calls The Oscars A “Two-Hour Meat Parade”
The legendary actor George C. Scott is known for his roles like Scrooge, General Patton, and Clarence Darrow. Playing General Patton won him an Oscar nomination but he when he got the call, he asked the Academy to “lose his number”. This comes decades after his first official declination for an oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 1961’s The Hustler. George C. Scott does not like the Academy and considers them too pompous and uptight. He even went as far as to say beforehand to the Academy that even if he wins an Oscar, we will decline it because he does not like them.
Marlon Brando’s Infamous Oscar Win Took Hollywood By Storm
Brando was nominated in the Best Actors category for The Godfather. The 1973 Oscars did not see the legendary actor attend the event. He sent Sacheen Littlefeather in his stead. The woman took to the stage when Brando was officially announced the winner. But instead of thanking everyone like the other Oscar Winners do, Sacheen Littlefeather went to show Hollywood the mirror for portraying Native Americans in such bad light.
Elizabeth Taylor Showed The Academy The Finger For Snubbing Her Husband
Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were both nominated for Oscars for their respective roles in Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? Burton had already seen a lot of snubs and had never made it to the Oscar Winners list despite so many nominations. So he convinced Taylor to go to Paris rather than be humiliated in front of his friends a fifth time. The 1966 Academy Awards was another Oscar snub for Burton although Elizabeth taylor won Best Actress. To show her solidarity, Taylor refused to accept it and showed the Academy she does not bow to them.
Paul Newman Was Too Tired Of The Oscars To Care
The acting legend had an incredible movie career spanning three decades. Between 1961 and 1982, the Cool Hand Luke star was nominated a whopping six times for the Oscars. He attended every ceremony, hoping to win at least once. he never did. In the end, he just got bored of the Academy shenanigans and called it quits, focusing solely on his career. When asked by the media, why he got tired, he put it very elegantly:
“It’s like chasing a beautiful woman for 80 years. Finally, she relents, and you say, ‘I’m terribly sorry. I’m tired.'”
John Gielgud Sees The Oscars As Being Full Of “Baloney”
Not many know this name but back in the 70s and 80s, John Gielgud was a force of nature to be reckoned with. His role of the quick-witted butler Hobson in the 1981 film – Arthur, won him an Oscar nomination. But Gielgud, was just as sharp-tongued in real life as his character Hobson in the movie. In Richard Mangan’s book – Gielgud’s Letter, he explains why. He even refused to attend the ceremony because the Oscars, according to John Gielgud, are “mutual congratulation baloney.”
Woody Allen Thinks The Oscars Are Too Silly
Filmmaker and actor Woody Allen has been nominated for the Oscars a staggering 24 times. Allen won the coveted award 4 times. Most of the movies that made him one of the Oscar Winners did so in the best Original Screenplay category. Even before Woody Allen won the Oscars for Annie Hall, he was very vocal about why the Oscars are useless:
“The whole concept of awards is silly. I cannot abide the judgment of other people, because if you accept it when they say you deserve an award, then you have to accept it when they say you don’t.”
