The Academy Awards hand out 24 Oscars every year, so there are always more losers than winners. But when you’re up for an acting award the evening begins with walking the red carpet with the world’s media focused on your appearance.
Please take a look above of our gallery of the 22 also-rans who dressed for glory but walked away empty handed. They might not have won the trophy, but at least they didn’t make our list of the Worst Dressed Oscar Winners.
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Alicia Vikander (“The Danish Girl”).
A little golden man would’ve looked great with that dress.
Lost Best Supporting Actor to Mark Rylance (“Bridge of Spies”).
Stallone was the favorite going into the Oscars, but his snub at the SAG Awards and BAFTAs proved too much to overcome. But he certainly looked like a winner.
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Patricia Arquette (“Boyhood”).
Stone stood out on the carpet in an unexpected chartreuse dress.
Lost Best Actor to Matthew McConaughey (“Dallas Buyers Club”)
Don’t worry, Leo. It will go your way in two years for a slightly less verbal performance (“The Revenant,” 2015).
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Anne Hathaway (“Les Miserables”).
Probably for the best she didn’t win. She looked stunning, but she might’ve tripped on her way up to the podium in that voluminous dress!
Lost Best Actress to Jennifer Lawrence (“Silver Linings Playbook”).
An improvement from the previous year’s dress, when she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for “The Help.”
Lost Best Actress to Meryl Streep (“The Iron Lady”).
Green always goes with gold, so it’s a shame this beautiful look wasn’t accented with a trophy!
Lost Best Actress to Natalie Portman (“Black Swan”).
Remember when Lawrence wasn’t a superstar? Her appearance on the red carpet in 2011 was one of the last times she wasn’t a household name, and that red dress certainly did its part to make her unforgettable.
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Mo’Nique (“Precious”).
Her big-screen breakthrough in “Up in the Air” was accompanied by a red-carpet breakthrough in this dress.
Lost Best Actress to Kate Winslet (“The Reader”).
That beautiful steel color would’ve looked great with her third Oscar, but the academy made her wait a couple more years. She ended up winning again for “The Iron Lady” (2011).
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Penelope Cruz (“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”).
Before she was Cookie (“Empire”) Henson was a working actress enjoying her breakthrough awards moment.
Lost Best Actress to Kate Winslet (“The Reader”).
Oh Anne, if only you’d worn this dress when you won a few years later for “Les Miserables.”
Lost Best Actress to Kate Winslet (“The Reader”).
Another one of those dresses that might’ve been problematic if Cruz had won. Watch the stairs!
Lost Best Supporting Actor to Alan Arkin (“Little Miss Sunshine”).
No one can blame Murphy for thinking he was going to win after taking home the Golden Globe and SAG Award. He left shortly after losing, but he looked good doing it.
Lost Best Actress to Reese Witherspoon (“Walk the Line”).
The fashionista picked a dress that wouldv’e been remembered forever, but she didn’t take home the neccesary accessory.
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Rachel Weisz (“The Constant Gardener”).
A beautiful, unexpected canary yellow dress would’ve stood out from other past winners had she gotten to accept the trophy on her first nomination.
Lost Best Supporting Actress to Cate Blanchett (“The Aviator”).
The year she won for “Black Swan” six years later she was pregnant with her first child. She was equally lovely when she was nominated for the first time for “Closer.”
Lost Best Actress to Nicole Kidman (“The Hours”).
“By a nose” was how Denzel Washington announced Zellweger’s loss to Kidman. Zellweger’s beautiful ruby dress would’ve looked great with a golden statue.
Lost Best Actress to Nicole Kidman (“The Hours”) and Best Supporting Actress to Catherine Zeta-Jones (“Chicago”).
Imagine the grace it takes to lose not once but twice in one night. She had reason to be as green as her beautiful dress with envy, but she would eventually win overdue Oscar honors for “Still Alice” (2014)
Lost Best Actress to Halle Berry (“Monster’s Ball”).
This was a significant moment for Kidman as she attended for the first time as a nominee and not as the spouse of a nominee (Tom Cruise). She proved to be a star in her own right.
Every Oscar winner for Best Picture
Every Oscar winner for Best Director
Every Oscar winner for Best Actor
Every Oscar winner for Best Actress
Every Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actor
Every Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actress
Musicals that won Best Picture
Westerns that won Best Picture
Tom O’Neil: My Top 25 Oscar Best Picture Winners of All Time
