The internet hasn’t taken too kindly to Paul Mescal and Dwayne Johnson’s Oscar snub. The Academy officially announced its complete list of nominations for this year’s coveted awards. While fans celebrated a few artists and their films for earning deserving nominations, the Academy left out others.
Paul Mescal, Dwayne Johnson, and more turn into biggest Oscars 2026 snubs
Oscar snubs hit Paul Mescal and Dwayne Johnson, among other potential nominees for this year’s Academy Awards. The Hollywood Reporter reports that Mescal failed to earn a nomination for Hamnet. For those unversed, Mescal portrays the playwright William Shakespeare in the emotional tear-jerker directed by Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao. Interestingly, Hamnet earned eight nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Jessie Buckley for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
Mescal’s co-star Jessie Buckley spoke about his Oscar snub and expressed her sadness to The Hollywood Reporter. She shared, “I know what we created together is something that’s so special to us, and I hold that so dearly in my heart, and there’s no part of Agnes that exists without Paul. There’s no part of what I created or what we created in this story which exists without Paul and what he poured into this story. So what is recognized belongs to him as much as him being recognized in his own category would.”
Moreover, Dwayne Johnson, who headlined the biographical sports drama film The Smashing Machine as former amateur wrestler and MMA fighter Mark Kerr, failed to earn an Oscar nod as well. The other nominations for Best Actor include Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent).
The Smashing Machine disappointingly landed only one nomination at this year’s awards, which was for Best Makeup and Hairstyling (via Post Wrestling).
Fans also expressed their support for Mescal and Johnson on X. One fan commented, “I have to live in a world where Paul Mescal is not an Oscar nominee for Hamnet.” Meanwhile, another fan wrote, “This has to be the biggest Oscar snub this year??? Poor Dwayne.”
The 98th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 15, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Fans can also watch it on Hulu and ABC (via ABC News).
