‘That’s a popularity contest’: Samuel L Jackson Still Sour Over His Oscar Snub For Django Unchained

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Samuel L Jackson who is widely recognized for his contribution to Marvel Cinematic Universe as Nick Fury is a highly prolific actor, having appeared in over 150 films. The actor has only one Oscar nomination which he got through a supporting role in Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction.” Though, this could be somewhat shocking taking into consideration that he had done some of the iconic roles in the industry.

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Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury

Also Read: Samuel L Jackson Reveals How Secret Invasion Makes Nick Fury More Badass

According to The Los Angeles Times, Samuel L Jackson somewhat agreed to the notion that his other roles didn’t get him Oscar nominations where the actor clarified that “I’m not doing statue-chasing movies.”

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“Everything I’ve done for Quentin has a moment that’s given me an opportunity, from ‘Jackie Brown’ to ‘The Hateful Eight’ to ‘Django [Unchained],’” Jackson said. He went on to explain why he got the Oscar nominations for The Pulp Fiction explaining, “‘Django’ was probably my best shot [at an Oscar] because it’s the most evil character I’ve ever played and they generally reward Black people for playing horrendous shit.”

Samuel L Jackson Considers Oscars To Be A ‘Popularity Contest’

Samuel L. Jackson playing the character of Nick Fury and Mace Windu
Samuel L. Jackson plays the character of Nick Fury and Mace Windu

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According to Samuel L Jackson, the Oscars are not rewarding people for their element that is to entertain but it’s more of a popularity contest. “That is cinema! That’s what we go into the big, dark room to do — to be entertained. That’s what we’re celebrating, the big s— that happened in Hollywood. Best actor, best actress … that’s some bull—. That’s a popularity contest. Or so I heard way back when when Martin Landau got the award [for “Ed Wood”] and I didn’t. [Whispers] “C’mon, Sam. Martin’s been nominated so many times. Don’t worry. Your time is coming.” Excuse me? I didn’t know that’s how it worked. I thought it was the acting performance that made the most impact,” the actor said who lost to Martin Landau for Tim Burton’s “Ed Wood” in 1995.

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Oscars ‘wasn’t a big deal for me,’ Samuel L Jackson Shared

Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu
Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu

Also Read: Is Samuel L. Jackson Banned From SNL?

Samuel L Jackson shared how his belief helped him get an Oscars. “Maybe a little bit. As jaded as I wanted to be about it, you know thinking, “Well, I should have won an Oscar for this or should have won for that and it didn’t happen,” once I got over it many years ago, it wasn’t a big deal for me. I always have fun going to the Oscars. I always look forward to getting a gift basket for being a presenter. [Laughs] I give stuff to my relatives; my daughter and my wife would take stuff out. It’s cool.”

He further shared that Oscars would never define who he is as an actor saying, “But otherwise, I was past it. I was never going to let the Oscars be a measure of my success or failure as an actor. My yardstick of success is my happiness: Am I satisfied with what I’m doing? I’m not doing statue-chasing movies. You know [whispers]: “If you do this movie, you’ll win an Oscar. No, thanks. I’d rather be Nick Fury. Or having fun being Mace Windu with a lightsaber in my hand.”

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Hollywood star Samuel L Jackson is set to reappear in Secret Invasion soon.

 

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Written by Priya Sharma

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Priya Sharma, Senior Content Writer and Social Media Manager at FandomWire and Animated Times. Having graduated in Journalism and Mass Communication, she possesses extensive expertise in crafting engaging and informative content. She has written over 2000 articles across Animated Times and FandomWire on pop culture, showing her dedication to delivering diverse and trending content to readers across the world. Apart from pop culture, she is quite enthusiastic about the Hallyu culture and is exploring the world of anime, expanding the horizons of her knowledge.