Jennifer Lopez: Jenny from the block, of Puerto Rican origin, lost what was considered a guaranteed place in the Best Supporting Actress category despite her acclaimed turn as stripper Ramona Vega in Hustlers. Instead, in a year where movie and Oscar conversations have been dominated by praise for JLo’s performance, Kathy Bates was nominated for Richard Jewell and Scarlett Johansson, also a Best Actress nominee, for Jojo Rabbit. This tweet from journalist Candice Frederick sums it up perfectly:
It’s been said a thousand times in the past 24 hours but it merits repeating: Jennifer Lopez deserved way better. On Monday morning the Oscars failed to nominate the Bronx-born Puerto Rican actor’s virtuosic performance in Hustlers—an oversight as frustrating as it is expected.
As Ramona Vega, Lopez was simultaneously sultry and cunning, cutthroat and warm, enchanting and formidable. The role felt tailor-made for Lopez, and she nailed it so perfectly that the film, equally stunning, will be impossible to forget for years to come. Another similarly irksome slight also hit Kenyan-Mexican actor Lupita Nyong’o, whose haunting turn as Adelaide in Us anchored Jordan Peele’s sophomore debut.
