One of 2024’s most fascinating film releases was Gia Coppola-directed The Last Showgirl, but Pamela Anderson’s first Oscar nomination miss exposes the reality of a well-known tragedy for the awards season. The film details the story of a middle-aged woman as the revue she dances in is abruptly canceled, and she must deal with the fallout that comes with not having anything to fall back on after 30 years. Anderson’s performance, especially during The Last Showgirl‘s ending, was excellent, but ultimately, it did not end up earning the actress her first Oscar nomination.
The Last Showgirl‘s reviews indicate that Anderson’s performance was worth at least a nod by the Academy, especially as she was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe for the role. However, that didn’t happen, and while there are a huge number of factors that go into why some performers get nominated over others, there is one reason in particular that The Last Showgirl fell victim to, leading to its unfortunate Oscars snub.
Pamela Anderson Missed Out On Her First Oscar Nomination Due To The Last Showgirl’s Late Release
The Film Missed Out On The Early Contender Conversations
The Last Showgirl premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 6, 2024, before starting a limited theatrical run on December 15, which expanded to a wider release on January 10, 2025. While the film earned a very strong reaction by the time it did release, by that point many of the biggest contenders for the 97th Academy Awards had already been set in stone, with plenty of campaigning already underway. This made it difficult for Anderson’s The Last Showgirl performance to stand out as much as it should have.
In the Best Actor category, Sing Sing, The Apprentice, and Conclave premiered in September 2023, May 2024, and August 2024, respectively. The Brutalist premiered in September, and A Complete Unknown was released in December.
The performers nominated for Best Actress are Cynthia Erivo for Wicked, Karla Sofía Gascón for Emilia Pérez, Mikey Madison for Anora, Demi Moore for The Substance, and Fernanda Torres for I’m Still Here. Emilia Pérez, Anora, and The Substance. The majority of said movies premiered during the Cannes Film Festival back in May 2024, absolutely giving them an early leg up in the compeтιтion. Wicked released in November, but that film was huge enough to easily break through the noise, and while I’m Still Here also premiered in September, it is clearly the exception.
Studios Need To Move Away From Releasing Smaller Oscar Contenders At The End Of The Year
The Middle Of The Year Is A Much Better Time To Premiere
The Last Showgirl was always going to be gunning for an Oscar, but unfortunately, its release strategy seems to have backfired. Releasing a film like this at the end of the year is meant to ensure that it doesn’t get lost in the conversation throughout the year, which has worked very well in the past. These days, however, the nominees seem to be set in stone much earlier than they once were. If films like The Last Showgirl are going to go for the gold, then an earlier release seems to be the winning strategy.
