Legendary actors who've never won an Oscar

Brad Pitt-In spite of being a heart throb for millions, an actor of Brad Pitt’s caliber has never walked away wit the golden statue. Interestingly, Pitt who has played a myriad of characters over the years has been nominated three times for an Oscar for the films The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Twelve Monkeys and Moneyball. Although Pitt has won other prestigious awards like the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for the same film (Twelve Monkeys) that also got him nominated for an Oscar, he wasn’t lucky there. It comes as a surprise as to why is one of Hollywood’s most popular and highest paid actors snubbed by The Academy?

Tom Cruise- It comes a shock rather than a surprise that Hollywood’s highest paid and one of the most successful stars has never won an Oscar! The Mission Impossible series star, whose career spans three decades in Hollywood, is considered as one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, a feat that is difficult to accomplish. Over and over again, Tom Cruise has been voted as one of the world’s 50 most beautiful people and remains an influential figure in Hollywood. Cruise was nominated thrice for an Oscar for his roles in films like Magnolia, Jerry Maguire and Born on the Fourth of July. Did the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences think otherwise?

Leonardo DiCaprio: He’s smart, handsome and exceptionally talented. That’s Leonardo DiCaprio for you. The actor and producer started his career with TV commercials before doing soap operas like Santa Barbara and Growing Pains. Films naturally followed.
Leonardo has established himself in Hollywood with films like Titanic, Romeo + Juliet. The Beach and Catch Me If You Can to name a few. Gangs of New York, Blood Diamond, The Aviator, Inception and The Departed only added to his success. But this Golden Globe winner has never been a recipient of the prestigious Oscar award. Leonardo has been nominated thrice. Films like Blood Diamond, The Aviator and What's Eating Gilbert Grape got him an Oscar nod but not the award. Wonder what causes a talented actor to miss the judges’ eyes. If not Leonardo, then who is the Oscar award fit for?

Richard Gere: Humanitarian and actor Richard Gere has never won an Oscar and the reasons are obvious. Richard Gere is a Buddhist convert and a staunch supporter of the Dalai Lama. The Pretty Woman actor was banned the Academy 20 years ago when he took to the Oscars stage and used the podium to talk against the Chinese Government. Gere is known to take the cause of Tibetans in exile. Not only was the actor banned from setting foot on the Oscar stage, but he was also banned by the Chinese government from entering China for the stance he took. The actor took to the stage this year to perform a musical with his Chicago co stars Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta Jones and Queen Latifah. But will the Academy forgive him and concentrate on his films rather than his stance to make him eligible for the prestigious award?

Johnny Depp- Being an A-List celebrity who has been immortalized on the Hollywood Walk of Fame doesn’t guarantee an Oscar. Nor does winning a Golden Globe award. Johnny Depp’s films have raked in millions at the Box Office but it’s baffling as to why the actor has never walked away with the golden statue. His performances in Sweeney Todd, Finding Neverland and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was exemplary and Depp got nominated thrice for an Oscar for all three films. But Johnny Depp hasn’t been lucky. What does it take an actor of his caliber to clinch the coveted award?