“Absolute Nonsense”: Brian Cox Calls Out The Oscars As He Remembers Gary Oldman’s Win The Year He Also Played Winston Churchill (And Did It “Better”)

Veteran actor Brian Cox slams the Oscars while recalling the time he played Winston Churchill around the same time Gary Oldman did as well. With a career spanning decades, Cox has earned widespread acclaim for his commanding roles in works such as the TV series Succession, the 2008 drama thriller The Escapist, and the 2000 Canadian-American series Nuremburg. Despite winning a Golden Globe for his portrayal of the global media titan Logan Roy in HBO’s Succession, the Scottish actor has yet to receive recognition from the Academy Awards.

Cox’s career is a testament to his versatility and talent, with roles that have consistently showcased his knack for embodying complex, larger-than-life characters on stage and the big screen. However, the actor has recently spoken out about his frustrations with the Oscars, criticizing the politics and timing behind the journey towards recognition. Cox argued that the Academy disproportionately focuses on high-profile, studio-backed films released during the “Oscar season” between Thanksgiving and Christmas, dismissing equally deserving performances that fall outside this narrow window.

Brian Cox Criticizes The Oscars Over Gary Oldman’s Darkest Hour Win

The Renowned Actor Reflects On Being Overlooked

Cox recently criticized the Oscars while recalling Gary Oldman’s win for Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour, the same year Cox delivered his own take on Winston Churchill. In 2017, Oldman delivered a lauded performance as Churchill, ultimately winning the Academy Award for Best Actor. The same year, Cox also took on the role of Churchill in Jonathan Teplitzky’s smaller independent film, Churchill. However, while Oldman’s film earned widespread recognition during awards season, Cox’s portrayal went largely unnoticed.

Cox’s frustration highlights a common criticism of the Oscars, where independent films released outside of the traditional awards season window often struggle to compete with big-budget, studio-backed campaigns. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Cox candidly reflected on the disparity and did not hold back in his criticism of the Oscars, particularly when it came to the year he competed with Oldman. He said:

Our film came out in the summer, and it was a relatively independent film, so you haven’t got the power of the studios behind it. The Oscars are absolute nonsense because everything that’s judged in the Oscars, it’s not a year’s work. It’s just the work that comes out between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I think
it makes those awards a fallacy
quite honestly because there’s a lot of other good work that goes on outside of what they call Oscar season. So my film never even got a look, and
I still think my performance is a better performance.

Our Take On Brian Cox’s Oscars Criticism

An Increasingly Relevant Challenge To Oscar Norms

Cox’s frustration can resonate with many performers and filmmakers who often see their work overshadowed by big-budget projects released in the late winter. As competition for recognition in Hollywood grows, marketing power and timing continues to eclipse equally deserving work—a particularly relevant point as we near the Christmas Day release of various Oscar contenders, such as James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown and Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu. Regardless of awards recognition, Cox’s legacy as an actor remains undeniable, and his willingness to call out the industry makes him an essential voice in the conversation surrounding visibility and independent work in Hollywood.