Mount Rushmore of Actors Who Never Won an Oscar

The Academy Award nominations were announced this morning and Joaquin Phoenix is nominated for Best Actor. I feel strongly…very strongly…that he should win. This got us talking about the greatest actors who have never won an Academy Award. It was really hard narrowing it down to just four but that’s what doing a Monday Mount Rushmore is all about.

Here’s who we came up with:

1. Sir Richard Burton

This is a name I would come up with if somebody asked me, “Name a great actor that you assume has won an ass-load of Oscars”. In his illustrious career, Burton received 7 nominations (6 for Best Actor, 1 for Best Supporting) but never got the trophy.

2. Glenn Close

Last year there was widespread support for Glenn Close to finally get her Oscar for her supporting performance in “The Wife”. In 2011 she was nominated for “Albert Nobbs” in which she played a stuffy English butler who was actually a woman PRETENDING to be a man. The Academy eats stuff like that up, but she didn’t win that year either. She also has 7 lifetime Oscar nominations, a record in the Actress category without a win.

3. Edward Norton

Quick! Name one fact about actor Ed Norton other than the movies he’s been in. You can’t, can you? This guy is such an actor’s actor it’s almost like he doesn’t exist outside his movie roles. He’s been nominated three times and the year he REALLY should have won for “American History X” they gave it to Roberto Benigni. ROBERTO FREAKING BENIGNI?!

4. Alan Rickman

Never. Even. Nominated.

Honestly, how did this happen? I can’t even point to one specific role he played or name a less deserving actor who DID win. But Alan Rickman has been SO good in everything he ever did that he should have gotten an Oscar. Now he’s gone and it’s too late! Do you see what you did, Hollywood?