Awardless: Our pick of movies that deserve an Oscar

The 90th Academy Awards honored 2017 releases and crowned The Shape of Water as Best Picture. Several films that critics and audiences still talk about never made the final cut for the top prize. Staff at Film Daily have kept their original picks handy, and a decade later the same titles still read like a parallel universe of what might have been.

The Florida Project

Director: Sean Baker. This deeply moving and unforgettable drama follows precocious six-year-old Moonee as she courts mischief and adventure with her friends and bonds with her rebellious but caring mother, all the while living in the shadows of Walt Disney World. Daisy: “I think this film was majorly overlooked – it’s beautifully shot, beautifully acted, and it features an important story. I’ve got a lot of respect for Sean Baker, too.” Emily: “I'd have to say The Florida Project, literally because the award 'Best Picture' insinuates something which is visually the best and The Florida Project was stunning on all grounds.” The film earned a single nomination for Willem Dafoe in Best Supporting Actor and landed on both the AFI and National Board of Review year-end lists, yet it still registers as one of the most glaring Best Picture omissions of its cycle.

mother!

Director: Darren Aronofsky. This riveting psychological thriller looks at a couple’s relationship that’s tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their otherwise peaceful existence. Amy: “Even though I’m not Darren Aronofsky’s biggest fan, the movie was an intoxicating nightmare which had me enraptured from start to finish. It was horrifying and ambitious and yes, its central allegory was laid on too thick, but it was still a ghoulish treat.” mother! received no Oscar nominations at all, but it later appeared on the New York Times readers’ list of the best 21st-century movies and earned fresh praise from Martin Scorsese for its craft and central performance.

The Disaster Artist

Director: James Franco. Franco tells the tragicomic true story of aspiring filmmaker and infamous Hollywood outsider Tommy Wiseau – the enigmatic man behind the disastrously classic cult movie The Room. Daniel: “It’s a controversial pick, that’s for damn sure, considering the sexual harassment allegations. However, the voting was done quite a while before this came to light. And Franco’s performance as Wiseau was spot on.” The film picked up one Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay after Franco had already collected a Golden Globe for the role earlier in the season; the later allegations curtailed any further awards momentum.

Baby Driver

Director: Edgar Wright. Wright’s action comedy follows a young getaway driver who – after being coerced into working for a crime boss – must face the music when a doomed heist threatens his life, love, and freedom. John: “Amazing film with a stellar cast. Although it had deservedly earned nominations for sound and editing, it may have been overlooked for Best Picture due to the Kevin Spacey scandal. To the people boycotting the film for that reason alone, I say you can’t let one bad apple ruin the whole pie.” Baby Driver ultimately collected three technical nods—for Film Editing, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing—yet stayed outside Best Picture contention.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos. The story follows Steven – a charismatic surgeon whose life starts to crumble around him when the behavior of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister. Lola: “There aren’t enough words to describe the cinematic genius of Yorgos Lanthimos. Stiff, weird, tense, and absurd, this film will take you off the edge of your seat and into a black hole of awkward (yet wondrous) confusion.” The film earned no Oscar recognition, though it collected Cannes Best Screenplay and multiple European Film Award prizes.

Retrospective Critical Reappraisal

Time has shifted the conversation around several of these titles. mother! in particular moved from polarizing release to late-career reappraisal, landing on the New York Times 21st Century best movies readers’ list in 2025 and drawing new comments from Scorsese on its performance and craft. The Florida Project continues to surface in academic and critical roundups whenever critics revisit American indie realism, while The Killing of a Sacred Deer keeps its cult grip on festival programmers who prize auteur-driven thrillers that resist tidy categorization.

Impact of #MeToo on Awards Campaigns

The 2017-2018 awards season unfolded against a rapid series of allegations that altered several campaigns. Allegations against James Franco surfaced around the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice window, effectively halting any push for The Disaster Artist beyond its single screenplay nod. Contemporary coverage of Baby Driver also noted how Kevin Spacey’s issues complicated the film’s reception even after its technical nominations had been secured. These events did not erase the films, but they narrowed the window in which voters felt comfortable elevating them.

Long-Term Legacy of the Snubbed Films

Streaming numbers and festival revivals have kept these titles alive. Baby Driver sequel speculation continues as of 2026, while The Florida Project remains a frequent reference point in conversations about poverty portrayals and the reach of independent cinema. The Disaster Artist still draws midnight crowds at repertory houses, and The Killing of a Sacred Deer regularly appears on syllabi for courses that examine modern Greek Weird Wave cinema.

Comparison to Later Oscar Snubs

The 2018 ceremony fits a longer pattern. Horror films like Hereditary later joined the same conversation that once surrounded Get Out and The Killing of a Sacred Deer, each cited as bold genre work passed over for Best Picture. The Florida Project and mother! sit alongside other indie and auteur-driven titles that critics continue to list when they tally the decade’s most conspicuous omissions, suggesting the 90th Oscars were hardly the last time the Academy favored safer bets over riskier ones.

Ten years on, the 2017 slate still offers a clear snapshot of what the Academy chose to celebrate and what it left on the table. The Florida Project, mother!, The Disaster Artist, Baby Driver, and The Killing of a Sacred Deer each earned their share of critical heat and audience loyalty, yet none crossed the final threshold for the evening’s biggest prize. Their continued presence on retrospective lists and streaming queues keeps the conversation about those choices very much alive.