In the grand and infinite pantheon of ‘things that absolutely suck’, losing an Oscars nomination a day before the ceremony is probably pretty high up there.
That’s exactly what’s happened to sound engineer Greg P. Russell, who scored a nom for Best Sound Mixing for his work on the Michael Bay movie 13 Hours. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Mac Ruth were all nominated for what was considered a surprise nod for the film – and its only appearance on the Oscars list.
Welp. Deadline reports that the Academy unanimously voted to strip Russell of his nomination after it emerged he had been calling members to make them aware of his work on the film – a strict no-no.
Nominees are banned from lobbying for their nomination, which includes even calling to check if press screeners were properly delivered. The other three 13 Hours nominees are still all good though. If the movie wins, Russell has to be the one to awkwardly watch them receive it without him.
I know the Best Sound Mixing Oscar probably isn’t high on your list of must-see awards today. That’s fine. That said, we all still have a primal desire to see some guy eat dirt over a simple mistake, and I would be remiss not to bring that to you. It’s also interesting to see how the Academy deals with these kind of infractions. Turns out not so kindly.
Russell has been nominated for sixteen Academy Awards in the Sound category. We’re sure he’ll get another one sometime.
Source: AV Club.
Photo: 13 Hours.
