2020 Oscars: Antonio Banderas lands first nomination as voters shun J.Lo, Eddie Murphy, Robert De Niro

Hollywood’s Oscar voters snubbed big names including Jennifer Lopez, Eddie Murphy and Robert De Niro on Monday while issuing a surprise first Academy Award nomination to actor Antonio Banderas for Spanish film “Pain and Glory.”

Singer and actress Lopez was widely praised for her role as an enterprising pole dancer in “Hustlers” as was Murphy in “Dolemite is My Name,” but neither landed among the contenders for acting honours that will be awarded at the Oscars ceremony on Feb. 9. Both had been nominated for Golden Globe awards.

“The big surprise of the day has to be Jennifer Lopez not getting a best supporting actress nomination,” said Variety chief film critic Owen Gleiberman.

“There was just so much buzz about it, so much expectation. A lot of people thought she was going to win.”

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the roughly 8,000-member group that hands out the Oscars, also continued Hollywood’s streak of giving a cold shoulder to Robert De Niro’s performance in “The Irishman.”

Two-time Oscar winner De Niro was nominated as a producer of “The Irishman,” which will compete for best picture, but not for his acting in the gangster epic. He also failed to land a Golden Globe or Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for the part.

Comic actor Adam Sandler had won acclaim for his dramatic role in crime thriller “Uncut Gems,” but voters left him out of the Oscar nominations. Gleiberman called Sandler’s performance “extraordinary.”

“It’s an amazing movie, a truly great performance that shows that Adam Sandler really had a kind of greatness in him,” Gleiberman said.

Awkwafina, who won a Golden Globe for playing a doting granddaughter in “The Farewell,” also was left out of the acting nods.

Walt Disney Co’s blockbuster sequel “Frozen 2” failed to secure a spot in the best-animated feature category, which included two lesser-known entries from Netflix Inc – “Klaus” and “I Lost My Body.”

The academy attracted renewed criticism for failing to recognize female directors by leaving out “Little Women” filmmaker Greta Gerwig. She was nominated for an adapted screenplay but not for best director.

Overall, “Little Women” received six nominations including best picture and a surprise nod for supporting actress Florence Pugh as difficult daughter Amy March.

Banderas, the 59-year-old veteran of movies including “The Mask of Zorro” and “Evita,” received his first Oscar nomination for playing a film director reflecting on his life choices in “Pain and Glory.” The movie was directed by Pedro Almodóvar, who based the film on his own life story.