Margot Robbie gained recognition from the Hollywood Academy overnight, winning her first Oscar nomination for the portrayal of American figure skating champion Tonya Harding in ‘I, Tonya’. Robbie has already won an AACTA and Critics’ Choice Award for this film.
She’ll be the leading Australian hope to win a gong at this year’s awards, with fellow Aussies controversially missing out on nominations, including Hugh Jackman for the ‘Greatest Showman’. ‘I, Tonya‘ also failed to gain a nomination for best picture, which would have given Robbie a second bite of the cherry as the film’s producer.
The 90th annual Academy Awards voters put forward nine best picture nominees including: The Shape of Water; Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri; Lady Bird; Get Out; The Post; Dunkirk; Call Me By Your Name and Phantom Thread.
Director of ‘Lady Bird’, Greta Gerwig became the fifth woman to ever be nominated for a best director accolade, whilst Rachel Morrison, cinematographer of ‘Mudbound’ made history as the first woman to ever gain recognition in that category.
In a year of scandals for Hollywood and with the rise of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, the scarcity of women nominated in key categories is likely to be hot topic for discussion. The best director category in particular, is regularly referenced as a symbol of gender inequality in the film industry, and this year that scrutiny will be magnified.
Gerwig follows only Lina Wertmuller, Jane Campion, Sofia Coppola and Kathryn Bigelow — the only woman to ever win (for The Hurt Locker).