20 Oscar Nominations in Genre Films that Surprised Everybody

Every year, in January, movie fans sit in expectation as the Academy Award nominations are announced. The event is a curiously low-profile party hosted by random stars who try their best to hold their preference for nominees and awkwardly laugh when some of them are on the board and others are left out of the race. Worldwide, groans and cries are heard. The cheers are very loud. The bets are placed. The race is on.

During the awards season, speculation floods the internet with theories and takes. Everyone’s allowed to have their opinion, even if the trend seems to go elsewhere. Unfortunately, the most important event in Hollywood has become predictable, long, and extremely boring in some editions. Scandals and wrong announcements are among the most remembered situations related to the Oscars, and sadly, huge events like Parasite sweeping the ballots seem to have gone to a secondary level of attention for viewers.

However, there are surprises. They are not very common, but at least every year, there’s a nomination that’s shocking and surprising. It seems impossible that an award will be given to those nominees, but the extremely conservative Academy sometimes “slips.” It’s the only way to explain how the following genre films got their names announced on Oscar night, even if it’s just as nominees. These are the Academy Award nominations for horror, thriller, and straight-up uncanny films that surprised everybody.

The following list may contain minor spoilers.

20 Get Out (2017)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay

Jordan Peele’s 2017 horror thriller Get Out tells the story of Chris, a young African-American man who accepts an invitation from his white girlfriend to meet her family. Chris is skeptical at first, but then accepts. The family from the all-white classic suburbia receives Chris with warmth and kindness. But Chris starts noticing something is… off. They aren’t exactly racist, but their behavior is weirdly curious. There’s a secret in the Armitage and he will find out the hard way.

Get Out Won Best Original Screenplay

In 2018, the film was nominated for four Academy Awards. It actually won for Best Original Screenplay, and Daniel Kaluuya was nominated as a potential Best Actor. But the Best Picture and Best Director nominations were a huge surprise. It was a pure horror film, and to this day, only six horror films have ever been nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. Also, it’s perhaps the most important horror debut in the last twenty years of cinema, and Peele’s name was also mentioned in the Best Director ballot that year.

Watch the trailer for Get Out here.

Stream on Prime Video

19 Back to the Future (1985)

Nominated for Best Original Screenplay

Back to the Future is the 1985 sci-fi adventure about the young Marty McFly getting himself in a pickle. Marty helps out his friend, a scientist we’ll call Doc Brown. Doc alleges he has created a time machine, and right during testing, he and Marty get assaulted by terrorists. Marty has no other choice but to board the DeLorean and start pressing some buttons. This is how he ends up in 1955 and threatens his own existence. He must find a way to convince a younger Doc that his invention worked, and they have to find a way to get Marty back to the present.

A Surprise Writing Nomination

The Spielberg touch was surely influential at the time. At the 1986 Academy Awards, the film received nominations for Best Sound, and it won for Best Sound Effects Editing. But the nomination for Best Original Screenplay was an excellent surprise that validated Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale’s work at putting together the special summer film that would change the genre forever. No longer were sci-fi films based on hard science, and rules could be bent for the sake of entertainment. To have Academy members recognize that in the world of genre films was just a cute and refreshing nod.

Watch the trailer for Back to the Future here.

Rent on Prime Video

18 Parasite (2019)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay

In Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, the Kim family lives below ground. They aren’t exactly wealthy, but work seems to be “toxic.” They spend their days stealing Wi-Fi and leeching off the rest of society. When they get a chance to “feed off” the Park family, they waste no time and start infiltrating any way they can.

What they find out when they go too far is that there are some secrets hidden in the posh household that should stay literally below ground. What starts as a comedy turns into a very sinister horror film that speaks a lot about current social dynamics, as much as we don’t like it.

A Stunning Best Picture Winner

The South Korean masterpiece was making everyone talk in 2018, and the Academy acknowledged it. Not only was the film nominated in the Best International Feature Film category (which it won, of course), but it also got one for Best Film Editing and Best Production Design. However, when nominations were announced, it was a shock to see Parasite in the ballots for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.

People were stunned. This was a comedy that turned into a dark comedy and then into a horror film. How could it be? It was also a non-English film in times when most Americans are afraid of subtitles. On February 9, 2020, the surprise turned into sheer shock when the film actually won the awards in the three most important categories of the night. It became the first non-English-language film in Academy Awards history to win Best Picture.

Watch the trailer for Parasite here.

Stream on Max

Related: 13 New Directors Who Recently Received Oscar Nominations for Their Debut Films

17 The Exorcist (1973)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay

William Friedkin’s groundbreaking horror film, The Exorcist, is the story of the MacNeil family as they navigate through an improbable event. Chris is a famous Hollywood actress working on Washington in her latest feature when her daughter, Regan, begins exhibiting strange behavior. Chris seeks the help of doctors who scratch their heads and ultimately recommend getting help from a priest. Father Karras evidences Regan’s ordeal and requests help from an expert in exorcisms. Both Father Merrin and Karras will face the ultimate evil, who has impregnated the soul of the poor 12-year-old.

Horror Makes a Case

Two years prior, Friendkin had made The French Connection, which shook the Academy (it won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and more) and basically gave Friedkin the necessary freedom to make his version of a shocking horror film. Nevertheless, The Exorcist was surprisingly nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture (the first time a horror film was nominated in that category), Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. That night, it would only win the Oscar for Best Sound, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

William Peter Blatty calmly received the award for his screenwriting work, but the very next day he spewed out some words against the Academy, saying they didn’t have the guts to give The Exorcist every single award that night. He also blamed George Cukor for campaigning against a horror film getting mentioned among the Best Picture nominees; this would set a precedent for Oscar snubs in horror.

Watch the trailer for The Exorcist here.

Stream on Max

16 The Shape of Water (2017)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay

2017’s The Shape of Water takes us to 1962, as the Cold War is on the minds of US military personnel. In an underground facility, a janitor by the name of Elisa forms a bond with a very strange creature a colonel has captured in South America. The humanoid amphibian has no way to communicate with Elisa, but their connection goes beyond language barriers. She realizes that if she doesn’t do something to help the creature escape, it will suffer at the hands of the ruthless man who just wants to weaponize humankind’s greatest discovery.

A Masterpiece Creature Feature

Guillermo del Toro’s creation is a rather original feature that broke all the rules of mainstream cinema when it was released. Not only that, it actually got nominated for 13 Academy Awards in 2018. Among those were Best Production Design and Best Original Score, which it actually won.

However, the romantic fantasy film about a woman falling in love with a rotten egg-munching creature from out of this world was also nominated for Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture. Everyone in the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood was in shock when del Toro won the two most important awards of the night for a horror fantasy film that many didn’t understand and others actually frowned at.

Watch the trailer for The Shape of Water here.

Rent on Prime Video

15 Young Frankenstein (1974)

Nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay

Mel Brooks’ comedy horror film Young Frankenstein parodies the classic tale by Mary Shelley and mocks just about every aspect of the horror genre, as seen by Hollywood back in the ’70s. In the film, Dr. Frederick Frankenstein is the grandson of the madman who tried to bring a monster back to life. Frederick is upset at everyone asking about his grandpa, so he makes it his mission to, once and for all, get rid of the myth when he inherits the family’s state in Transylvania and does some digging. Young Frankenstein (pronounced “Frankensteen”) is one of the best horror comedies ever made.

Couldn’t Stack Up Against The Godfather Part II

Brooks wasn’t a stranger to the Academy Awards. In 1969, he actually won an Oscar for the screenplay he wrote for The Producers. But Young Frankenstein added the horror element to the already difficult equation of comedy. It wasn’t very likely to get nominated for any awards. And yet it did. It was nominated for Best Sound and Best Adapted Screenplay, a respectable category for the irreverent film that Brooks was, and still is, very proud of. The chances of winning were nil, as 1975 was the year of The Godfather Part II.

Watch the trailer for Young Frankenstein here.

Young Frankenstein is not available to stream today

14 Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Nominated for Best Picture and Best Director

Mad Max: Fury Road is an apocalyptic action film that takes audiences to a wasteland in the future where fuel is gold and putting the pedal to the metal is a part of religion. Immortan Joe is the ruler, and restricts the population’s access to water, and believes breeding is the only way he can survive. But a rebellion is put in the hands of Imperator Furiosa and Max Rockatansky, who decide to stand up to the relentless villain, who will stop at nothing until beating them and gaining back his wives.

A Visual Masterpiece, but Didn’t Win the Big Awards

The film was nominated for 10 Academy Awards at the 88th edition of the Oscars. Since it was an action film, the technical categories were a sure bet. But Mad Max‘s creator, George Miller, was also recognized in the categories of Best Director and Best Picture, something very rare in the action genre.

People were skeptical, but when Fury Road started being announced as the winner in just about every category it was nominated in, the most conservative members of Hollywood society feared Miller would take home the important awards. It didn’t. A film few people remember actually won, and Mad Max: Fury Roadactually lost in the category that everyone believed it would win from the start: Best Visual Effects.

Watch the trailer for Mad Max: Fury Road here.

Stream on Max

13 Nightcrawler (2014)

Nominated for Best Original Screenplay

In Dan Gilroy’s very peculiar thriller, Nightcrawler, Jake Gyllenhaal gives life to Lou Bloom, a greedy thief with no talent at all. While going home, he witnesses a series of journalists taking photos and recording footage of a car accident. Bloom realizes he can make a living out of selling this type of information to media outlets, but the problem is that his ambition goes too far.

A Dark Entry in the Screenplay Category

Many people thought Gilroy’s film would make the Academy realize how good Gyllenhaal’s performance was. But when nominations were announced in 2015, the film got a different nod. One that no one expected, except the ones who pushed the FYC campaign. Nightcrawler, a thriller about media greed, was nominated for Best Original Screenplay. What’s curious is that, considering that year wasn’t exactly notable in regards to the actual winners, Nightcrawler actually stood a chance, but the Academy decided to recognize the usual artsy films.

Watch the trailer for Nightcrawler here.

Rent on Prime Video

12 What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

Nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor

Robert Aldritch’s What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? tells the story of the Hudson sisters, Jane and Blanche, who have both fallen from grace for different reasons after being promising child actors in Hollywood. Jane, played by Bette Davis, is resentful of her sister Blanche, played by Joan Crawford, who becomes a paraplegic after a freak car accident. Blanche is emotionally tortured by Jane, who believes her more successful sister is out to get her. The film is rumored to be the center of the feud between Davis and Crawford.

Psychological Thrillers Weren’t Popular

In 1963, when nominations were announced, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? was mentioned in the ballots of some technical categories, but Bette Davis’ name was nominated as a potential Best Actress winner. To put it simply, without addressing the rivalry between the actresses, it was simply improbable that a psychological horror thriller would get nominated for the acting categories.

But in reality, Davis’ is one of the best horror performances ever registered. Victor Buono, who made his debut in the film, also received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. This was Davis’ last nomination of the ten she collected throughout her whole career.

Watch the trailer for What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? here.

Rent on iTunes

Related: 20 Genre Films From 2023 That Should Have Received Oscar Nominations

11 Psycho (1960)

Nominated for Best Director and Best Supporting Actress

Psycho is an Alfred Hitchcock film about a very unfortunate decision by a woman who decides to start a new life by committing a crime. Marion Crane steals a lot of cash and runs away to convince her lover to join her. However, a storm forces her to make a stop in a rundown motel on the road. The Bates Motel appears to have available rooms, but Marion should never have stopped there.

Hitchcock Horror

The controversial Psycho is undeniably one of the most important horror films ever made. But when it was released, it pissed off everyone in the industry. Hitchcock had touched a nerve with a different storytelling style, and he had chosen horror as the haven for his new technique. Getting nominated for an Oscar wasn’t only risky, but improbable. In total, it was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actress for Janet Leigh (Crane), and Hitchcock for Best Director. However, that year, it was all about Billy Wilder and his masterpiece The Apartment.

Watch the trailer for Psycho here.

Rent on Vudu

10 Jaws (1975)

Nominated for Best Picture

Steven Spielberg’s Jaws tells the story of Amity Island facing a horrific threat they never imagined could reach the shore. A great white shark is causing havoc among the visitors, and Chief Martin Brody can’t do anything about it because Mayor Larry Vaughn insists the beaches must stay open. However, a child dies, and Brody joins oceanographer Matt Hooper and shark hunter Quint in a hunt for the monster that will require a much bigger boat.

The First Summer Blockbuster

There’s no denying the importance of a film like Jaws. In 1975, it became the first Hollywood blockbuster, and it paved the way for summer release schedules. It was only natural that the film would somehow be recognized by the Academy. However, everyone waited for Spielberg’s nomination for Best Director and nothing more.

In a bizarre turn of events, Spielberg’s name was nowhere to be found on the ballots, and instead the film showed up in the Best Picture race. Imagine that: a horror film without the artsy features of more serious films like The Exorcist. The film would then win the Oscars for Best Film Editing, Best Sound, and Best Original Score. It was a blow that Spielberg would never recover from.

Watch the trailer for Jaws here.

Rent on Prime Video

9 WarGames (1983)

Nominated for Best Original Screenplay

1983’s WarGames tells the story of David Lightman, a very clever computer whiz who uses his talent to hack into the school’s systems and change his grades. But he finds he can do a lot more when he starts communicating with a remote computer in the age when the internet was still theoretical. He starts playing a game with it and unknowingly messes with a system that could start World War III.

An Unexpected Sci-Fi Entry

Starring Matthew Broderick in one of his best performances, WarGames was released at a time when computers represented the future. It was a huge hit from a commercial perspective.

However, the Academy saw a lot more in the film. The technical categories—Best Sound and Best Cinematography—were a nice surprise. But the story was also recognized through a Best Original Screenplay nod that acknowledged the originality of the film. Needless to say, the themes of cybersecurity and our dependence on technology are extremely relevant in today’s times.

Watch the trailer for WarGames here.

Stream on Max

8 Arrival (2016)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay

Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival is the story of humans trying to deal with the most important event in history. Large vessels have arrived at different points on Earth. The selection of cities seems to be random, and communication attempts have been unfruitful. That’s when the military decides to hire a linguist to see if she can help them figure out a way to communicate with the aliens. Louise Banks is recruited and comes up with a language to communicate with the mystical creatures that ultimately reveal the reason why they’re on Earth. The problem is that we may be too late to figure it out.

A Snub in Every Sense of the Word

Arrival is a hard sci-fi film that received critical acclaim upon release. Amy Adams’ performance as Banks is unarguably the best in her entire career, and it immediately generated Oscar buzz. The weird thing is that the Academy decided not to even nominate her (this was during a year when performances weren’t exactly groundbreaking).

Instead, they went the other way around. Sure, the film’s technical backdrop is outstanding and was largely nominated in that department (in a bizarre turn of events: no special effects). But Villeneuve being considered for Best Director was something entirely surprising because of the film’s genre. Of course, Best Picture was also a surprise, but in retrospect, it’s safe to say it wasn’t a year filled with extraordinary cinema. Arrival had to be there in every way possible.

Watch the trailer for Arrival here.

Stream on Paramount+

7 Starman (1984)

Nominated for Best Actor

John Carpenter’s Starman tells the story of aliens who respond to the invitation sent on Voyager 2. They arrive in Wisconsin and clone Scott Hayden, who has passed away and left Jenny as a widow. At first, Jenny is terrified of the event, but then she forms a strong connection to the new Scott, who finds a way into her heart as well. When the authorities realize the new arrival has the capacity to miracle his way out of anything, they start chasing him and Jenny, who must start thinking that perhaps she must begin thinking of saying goodbye.

Jeff Bridges’ First Nomination

Starman is a romantic sci-fi film directed by John Carpenter, director of Halloween, The Thing, and Christine. He’s not exactly Oscar material, at least in the eyes of the Academy. But actually, Starman is an extremely effective film that stands among the best of the ’80s, with two incredible performances in the hands of Karen Allen and Jeff Bridges. His performance as alien Scott was so good, it was recognized in major award ceremonies, including the Oscars, which nominated him for Best Actor in 1985. Given that it’s the only nomination a Carpenter film has ever received, it’s quite surprising.

Watch the trailer for Starman here.

Stream on The Criterion Channel

6 Blue Velvet (1986)

Nominated for Best Director

David Lynch’s Blue Velvet takes us to a North Carolina suburb where Jeffrey, a college student, is forced to come home after his father has a heart attack. When he discovers a severed human ear, he takes it to the police, and thus begins his very cinematic fall down a spiral of crime, sexual deviation, and every item in the catalog of Lynch’s surrealist cinema. Needless to say, it isn’t an easy film to watch.

David Lynch Lost to Oliver Stone

Blue Velvet is one of Lynch’s most traditional films. But it wasn’t well received by critics in 1986. They just didn’t connect with Lynch’s version of the criminal underworld being dissected in his own style of social commentary. However, some of those who saw the film actually saw the value of his auteur work. It was a shock that Lynch’s name was mentioned by one of the most conservative organizations in the world. Of course, he didn’t win (Oliver Stone did), but it’s nice to imagine what he was thinking when he saw his name on the ballot.

Watch the trailer for Blue Velvet here.

Stream on Tubi

5 Sex, Lies and Videotape (1989)

Nominated for Best Original Screenplay

Steven Soderbergh’s edgy drama film Sex, Lies, and Videotape tells the story of Ann and John, an unhappy couple who find escape from their mundane lives in affairs that take place very close to them. John is sleeping with Ann’s sister, Cynthia, and Ann meets Graham, a friend of John’s with a very weird fetish, who will make her leave her comfort zone. The film is a dark exploration of unrevealed desires and a great deconstruction of the figure of modern marriage. It’s one of the best independent films you’ve probably never seen.

A Great Introduction

Sex, Lies, and Videotape is one of Soderbergh’s highest-rated films. But it’s one of his most obscure ones because it was made for a small amount of money at the beginning of his career. It was very surprising when the film, his actual feature directorial debut, made people talk outside the indie cinema circle. When Oscar nominations were announced in 1990, Soderbergh’s name was there beside Spike Lee’s and Woody Allen’s. It was a very nice introduction to the industry on a night when probably the least notable nominee got the award. Dead Poets Society for Best Original Screenplay? Hard to believe.

Watch a clip of Sex, Lies and Videotape here.

Rent on Apple TV

Related: Which of Jodie Foster’s 5 Oscar-Nominated Roles Is Her Best?

4 The Sixth Sense (1999)

Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay.

The Sixth Sense is the story of Malcolm Crowe, a child psychologist who must deal with his latest case while his marriage seems to be ending. Cole Sear is a 9-year-old who doesn’t have any friends and has no father figure. His mother doesn’t really listen to him, and he finds in Malcolm someone he can trust. But then Cole reveals the truth of his unique and awkward behavior: He sees dead people. Ghosts, remaining spirits, and whatchamacallits. The film is, without question, one of the best horror movies of the ’90s.

A Level M. Night Shyamalan Hasn’t Reached Since

Contrary to what people think, The Sixth Sense is not M. Night Shyamalan’s debut as a director. It was actually Praying with Anger and then his first Hollywood film, Wide Awake. However, The Sixth Sense was so successful, it’s hard not to consider it his first entry into the world he wanted to be in. When Disney (through the Hollywood Pictures label) and Spyglass Entertainment started campaigning for the film, nobody believed it would make the rounds.

After all, it was a modern horror film, starring a former action star who now dared to step into a more sober role. To everyone’s surprise, the FYC campaign worked, and The Sixth Sense was nominated in the categories of Best Picture and Best Director (and others), making Shyamalan very proud of his first attempt to recreate a compelling ghost story.

Watch the trailer for The Sixth Sense here.

Rent on Apple TV

3 The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Nominated for the Big Five

The Silence of the Lambs tells the story of Clarice Starling, an FBI trainee who gets assigned to a very important task. She must interrogate Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a former psychologist who is now imprisoned in a mental institution, so he can help the agency find a serial killer that’s wreaking havoc among young women. Lecter instantly connects with Starling, first seeing a victim of his clever line of thought, but then connecting on an emotional and almost dangerous level. When Lecter starts making demands, Starling leads the way in using the doctor’s wit to find Buffalo Bill, but she also observes that Lecter may have a hidden agenda.

Horror Took Home the Gold

In 1991, the horror thriller The Silence of the Lambs made everyone afraid of their own shadow. Lecter was a romantic monster, but he was still a monster who was able to manipulate your deepest thoughts. The Academy was instantly captivated by the film’s success and the reaction of critics. But again, it was a horror movie with graphic violence and a cannibal on screen. In 1991, Dances with Wolves won the top awards, leaving Goodfellas out of the race. Genre films were not welcome. However, Jonathan Demme’s film was mentioned in seven categories, and on Oscar night, it actually made history: The Silence of the Lambs is one of the three films in cinema history to have won the Big Five Oscars.

Watch the trailer for The Silence of the Lambs here.

Stream on AMC+

2 Shadow of the Vampire (2000)

Nominated for Best Supporting Actor

E. Elias Merhige’s Shadow of the Vampire is an extremely underrated vampire film about the making of the first Nosferatu film. F.W. Murnay is a German director trying to make an unauthorized version of the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. Of course, he thinks the main character is the one that’ll make his film a masterpiece.

Up to this point, we’ve merely described the making of the actual film, Nosferatu. But in Merhige’s very original film, Max Schreck, the character actor that brought Nosferatu to life, is actually a real vampire, and he makes a mess during Murnau’s production when he starts sucking the blood out of the crew.

Willem Dafoe Gives an Amazing Performance

It’s not necessary to explain why Shadow of the Vampire isn’t the typical film you see at the Oscars. To this day, people have trouble identifying what genre it falls in, and we can’t blame anyone for that. However, when the nominations were announced in 2001, the film was not in one, but two ballots. The Best Makeup category was a nice nod to the fact that legend says the real Schreck didn’t actually need makeup. But then Willem Dafoe, who gives life to Count Orlock, was on the ballot for Best Supporting Actor. If you have a chance to give this one a watch, you shouldn’t waste any time. You’ll see why he deserved to be there.

Watch a clip of Shadow of the Vampire here.

Rent on Prime Video

1 Mulholland Drive (2001)

Nominated for Best Director

In David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive, spectators are taken to Hollywood, where Betty Elms is trying to become a famous actress. One day, Betty finds Rita in her apartment. The woman has amnesia and has no knowledge of who she is. She was involved in a car crash, and her memory is completely gone. When they begin searching for clues, this will take both of them to Hollywood’s underbelly of corruption, perfectly portrayed by David Lynch in one of his greatest and most original films.

David Lynch Does it Again

Mulholland Drive is a great fantasy film released in 2001. By that point, everyone knew Lynch and his ability to tell different stories. His latest was unconventional, steamy, and enigmatic. The mystery was far from being easily solved, and some people didn’t exactly connect with the movie. However, in the nominations for the 74th Academy Awards, the surrealist director’s name was put beside other more traditional filmmakers, and the shock was visible while Lynch surely smirked. It was his third nomination, as he was also nominated for another film above on this list and for Best Adapted Screenplay for his work on The Elephant Man.

Watch the trailer for Mulholland Drive here.

Rent on Vudu

Let’s take a look at some of the movies which got zero attention in the current awards season: