The nominees for the 2024 Oscars have been announced, and with a year of brilliant films filled to the brim with excellent talent there aren’t a lot of surprises when reviewing the nominee list… except for one MAJOR surprise, and that is the nomination of Margot Robbie for Best Actress in Barbie, and the nomination for Greta Gerwig for Best Director for Barbie… or I should say, the non-nomination of Margot and Greta.
With Barbie being the highest grossing film for 2023, it wasn’t surprising to see that it has received eight nominations, including Best Picture, however it is very surprising to see that the film’s leading actress Margot Robbie and the genius mind behind the lens who directed the film, Greta Gerwig, have both missed out on a nomination. Unsurprisingly, America Ferrera was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in Barbie and Ryan Gosling was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Ken in Barbie. While I am super supportive of all the absolutely well deserved nominations for Barbie, there is just one BIG thing that just isn’t sitting right with me, and that is the fact that Hollywood has absolutely proved the whole point of the plot of Barbie right with it’s nomination of Ryan Gosling for his role as Ken and snubbing Margot Robbie for her role as Barbie and Greta Gerwig as the film’s director and co-writer.
The whole premise of Barbie is that it explores the gendered stereotypes as it makes a hilariously insightful comment on the patriarchy and how it hurts both men and women in both the “real world” and in “Barbie world”. The film demonstrates how adhering to old patriarchal systems actually does not benefit men as it forces expectations upon them that ultimately lead to unfulfillment in their life. Part of this patriarchal system is that women are second class to men – somewhat of a mere accessory or a trophy piece marking a level of success in a man’s life. As Ken embarks on his journey to self-acceptance and discovering his identity, Barbie is also embarking on her own journey trying to discover her purpose and place in the world and as well as her identity. There is even a monologue given by America Ferrera’s character, Gloria, that is so on the nose to the societal pressures places upon females that resonated with women around the world (I’ll include the clip below), and the lack of nominations for both Margot and Greta just prove the point of not only this monologue but the whole plot of the entire movie!
Even Ryan Gosling has released a statement expressing his feelings about the snub upon Margot and Greta:
“There is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally celebrated film. No recognition would be possible for anyone on the film without their talent, grit and genius. To say that I am disappointed that they are not nominated in their respective categories would be an understatement.”
America Ferrera also expressed her disappointment in this statement:
“I was incredibly disappointed that they weren’t nominated. Greta has done just about everything that a director could do to deserve it… Creating this world, and taking something that didn’t even have inherent value to most people and making it a global phenomenon. It feels disappointing to not see her on that list.”
She also went as far as describing Margot Robbie as a master of her craft, stating:
“One of the things about Margot as an actress is how easy she makes everything look. And perhaps people got fooled into thinking that the work seems easy. But Margot is a magician as an actress in front of the screen, and it was one of the honours of my career to get to witness her pull off the amazing performance she did.”
I personally have to agree with both Ryan and America; there simply is no Ken without Barbie, there is no Barbie without the talent and genius of Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig, and it is bitterly disappointing to see that they are not being honoured with the recognition that they deserve for their parts in this history making film. Also, as a fellow Australian, I have had the absolute pleasure of watching Margot Robbie’s career evolve from her very beginnings as Donna Freedman on Neighbours all the way to her Hollywood debut in The Wolf of Wallstreet and watched her excell from project to project. She is an absolute master of her craft, and her portrayal of Barbie moved me in such a way that I can not even put into words except for that never have I ever had a character or a story resonate with me to my very core like I have with Barbie.
Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig are both so talented, they are both so extraordinary, and it kills me to think that they may think that they aren’t good enough after giving their everything to this film, and that the Academy doesn’t think that they are good enough for their outstanding, incredibly genius comment on society in Barbie. The quote “Nobody gives you a medal or says thank you” has never applied more than it has now.
While I am happy for Ryan Gosling and America Ferrera for their absolutely deserved nominations for their roles in Barbie, I am utterly disappointed that Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig didn’t receive the recognition that they deserve for their parts in this iconic, history making film. I honestly don’t think that the Academy watched the same Barbie film that the rest of the world did, and if they did, then they completely missed the point. I know that they aren’t likely to see this little blog post, but I am just going to leave Gloria’s (America Ferrera) iconic monologue here because it truly resonates with this Oscar nomination snub.
Until next time,
my neuro diaries 
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