I thought it was A Beautiful Mind that he missed out on the win for. The movie won Picture, Director and Supp. Actress. Wasn't it that year when he pinned the BAFTA producer to the wall? After all, even though he did get wide support among critics for The Insider, he was still seen as a fairly new star in America (despite prominent roles in The Quick & the Dead, Virtuosity and L.A. Confidential). If his bad-boy image prevented him from winning in 1999, how did he manage to win the following year for Gladiator?OscarGuy wrote:even believe that's why Russell Crowe didn't win for The Insider.
(Mister Tee) I think, as most are saying, it was the combination of career affection
I think the Academy completely missed an opportunity that year. They wasted their sentimental vote on Arkin when they could have given it to Peter O'Toole. Both gave less-than-career-best performances, but O'Toole was on nod # 8 and Arkin on career nod # 3. It would have been one thing if they passed on O'Toole, but to give a sentimental win to someone else in the same year just seems cruel. What's worse is that Arkin wasn't better than Murphy, either.