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Gerwig, Robbie, DiCaprio Snubbed in Oscar Nominations

Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at the Governors Awards on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles. (AP)
Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at the Governors Awards on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles. (AP)
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Gerwig, Robbie, DiCaprio Snubbed in Oscar Nominations

Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at the Governors Awards on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles. (AP)
Leonardo DiCaprio arrives at the Governors Awards on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles. (AP)

Director Greta Gerwig and actress Margot Robbie, the women who helped make "Barbie" the runaway box office success of 2023, failed to land directing and lead actress Oscar nominations on Tuesday.

Leonardo DiCaprio, the lead actor in director Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon," was passed over by Hollywood's film academy in that category.

"Barbie" and "Killers of the Flower Moon" did snag two of the 10 best picture nominations, though they face formidable competition from the awards season frontrunner, "Oppenheimer," which led Tuesday's nominations with 13 nods.

Gerwig landed a nomination for best adapted screenplay for "Barbie," along with her husband Noah Baumbach. The movie, which earned over $1.4 billion at the worldwide box office in 2023, snagged eight nominations in total, and Robbie is credited as a producer for the best picture nod.

Also not making the Oscar nomination cut was "Past Lives" star Greta Lee, who was vying for a best actress nod for her role in the romantic drama set in Seoul, South Korea, and New York.

Joining her, "Ferrari" actress Penelope Cruz did not receive a nomination for her supporting role in the high-speed racing drama despite good reviews for her performance.

Bradley Cooper was left off the best director list for "Maestro," though he was nominated for best actor for starring in the film as composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein. Cooper also was snubbed in the directing category for 2018 best picture nominee "A Star is Born."

Among the overlooked films, "The Color Purple,” the musical adaptation of the 1982 book and the 1985 film, was almost completely shut out of the 2024 Oscars race, receiving only one nomination.

Danielle Brooks received the movie’s sole Oscars nod for best supporting actress, while "American Idol" winner Fantasia Barrino was snubbed for the best actress nomination.

The newest "The Color Purple," which was inspired by the Broadway musical of the same name, may repeat the history of no Oscar wins like the movie it was based on - both led by industry giants Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg.

While the original movie received 11 Academy Award nominations, including best picture, it did not win in any category.

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Entertainment

'Smile 2' Nicely Targets Pop Star Fame with the Terrific Naomi Scott

This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Naomi Scott in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)
This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Naomi Scott in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)
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'Smile 2' Nicely Targets Pop Star Fame with the Terrific Naomi Scott

This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Naomi Scott in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)
This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Naomi Scott in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)

In an early scene in “Smile 2,” the fictional pop superstar Skye Riley is in her drug dealer's apartment. “Do you believe in weird stuff?” he asks her, between doing lines of coke.
You certainly will after this horror romp — writer-director Parker Finn's second movie that suddenly opens up the franchise with the promises of multiple directions in the future. Not for that drug dealer, though: He soon smiles at her demonically as he repeatedly slams a 35-pound gym weight into his head, making it hamburger, The Associated Press said.
“Smile 2” lands as unsettling grins are plastered on pumpkins and politicians alike as we approach Halloween and Election Day, and the psychotic, overly made-up leads of “Joker: Folie à Deux” have been putting up a brave face at their terrible box-office numbers.
So it's the perfect time for a sequel to 2020's “Smile,” which bridged the gap between elevated art horror and straight-out, unapologetic slasher. Finn this time takes on fame, a better tonal fit than the generational trauma of the first. It's a meditation on breakdowns in the public eye, with a side dish of body horror.
We start six days after the last movie but they are barely connected — a single character for a few minutes — as we watch a demon that forces its victims to smile before meeting a gruesome end working its way into the low-level drug game.
The evil entity will eventually glom onto our heroine, Skye, a fictional Grammy-winning pop superstar akin to if Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus had a baby. We meet her a year after a horrific car crash she was in that killed her famous boyfriend and left her with a Vicodin addiction and rumors about whether she had anything to do with it. That drug dealer has now infected Skye, but she has no idea what's in store (or in score, the terrific work of Cristobal Tapia de Veer).
One thing to really beam about is leading lady Naomi Scott going for it all-out, all snot, smeared blood and wide-eyed, full on-fear. Scott manages to pour her humanity into the part — diva, whimpering, defiant, strung out, panicked. She even sings on the soundtrack — songs that are credible hits.
The smile demon collides with Skye as she's about to launch a comeback tour and the pressure is on. Finn is at his best here, mocking confessional TV interviews — a Drew Barrymore cameo, a nice touch — full of self-work and apologies: “I let you down and I promise this will never happen again.” Her management demands that she show up “smile and read from the teleprompter.” Skye's mom — on the payroll — is little help: “You need to stay hydrated,” she tells her after Skye is clearly in torment.
Finn has become a much more assured filmmaker and uses humor so well here, from nasty gangsters enjoying pumpkin Frappuccinos to our heroine Googling “Does vomit have DNA?” He's still fond of jump-scares and blood spurting and gross-out tricks, like a body dragged by a truck until it's just a smear with entrails. One delightful moment has Skye chased by demonic backup dancers, a Bob Fosse-meets-"Thriller" sequence.
Finn also has a ball putting his heroines into cringe-worthy situations. In the first movie, a murdered cat got bundled into a kid’s birthday present. In this one, it's a impromptu speech in front of music industry types that goes horrifically off the rails. He's got a deeper target: How do we quiet those voices in our heads that say we're no good?
Finn's script sometime lags as he searches for an ending for “Smile 2,” seemingly in two minds, before basically delivering both, kicking up dream sequences and alternate timelines like a squid pumping out ink to cover its tracks. Over two hours ends up being too long.
But he has found a great satirical target, given life to a third film easily and showcased another rising star to watch. That's a reason to, well, smile about.
“Smile 2,” a Paramount Pictures release that lands in movie theaters on Friday, is rated R for “strong bloody violent content, grisly images, language throughout and drug use.” Running time: 127 minutes. Three stars out of four.