Leonardo DiCaprio (Best Actor, Killers of the Flower Moon)
Paramount / Apple TV+
How is it that one of the universally-agreed upon best actors of our generation is so continually under-appreciated? Leo finally won his Oscar back in early 2016 for The Revenant, and while that movie isn’t bad, no one would list it as his best movie or performance. Instead, his work with some of the best directors of all time-including Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino- goes continually under appreciated with regard to awards. DiCaprio anchors Killers of the Flower Moon for its nearly 3.5 hour long runtime, playing a type of character we’ve never seen from him before-a kiniving, naive, idiot. It’s one of his best performances. DiCaprio is the level of actor who deserves to have more than just one Oscar for his career-maybe his forthcoming collaboration with Paul Thomas Anderson will be just that. —Evan Romano
How to Blow Up a Pipeline (Best Adapted Screenplay)
NEON
So many aspects of How to Blow Up a Pipeline, which was released to critical acclaim early in 2023 and was unceremoniously (and undeservingly) left out of the later-year awards conversation, are deserving of praise, but perhaps the most impressive is the script. Co- written by director Daniel Goldhaber along with Ariela Barer and Jordan Sjol, Pipeline manages to turn a nonfiction book highlighting the history of revolutionary acts into a tense, fast-paced film that plays like an eco-heist version of Ocean’s Eleven. Great, underrated movie that would have been deserving of an Adapted Screenplay nomination. —Evan Romano
Charles Melton (Best Supporting Actor, May December)
Netflix
Perhaps the biggest snub of the year-from a pure acting standpoint-is Charles Melton in May December.The former Riverdale star proved anyone who may have doubted the acting skills of someone who started on a teen drama based on Archie comics wrong in his portrayal of Joe, a man whose deeply troubled life spiraled far out of his control at an age where he really didn’t know any better. Melton plays the levels of this character at an extremely impressive degree, and watching the various layers of his shell crack over the course of director Todd Haynes’ film is heartbreaking. Melton has been one of the stars of this awards season due to both his charisma and fantastic red carpet style, so we’re hopeful and optimistic that his career will take on a major upswing from here regardless. —Evan Romano
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Pom Klementieff (Best Supporting Actress, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning)
Paramount
This one is all about the vibes.