


Gwyn sheds a tear for being held up as really, really great

The Oscars is a time for movie big-wigs to pat themselves on the back and get universal recognition for their work.

This year the safe bet looked initially to be Lincoln sweeping the board... until Argo went and blew a raspberry in the Academy's face at the Golden Globes and the BAFTAs .

So before you wave that fiver in a bookie's face ( tip: Argo may be worth at least one of those quids ), check out the below. Sometimes the sure thing crashes and burns as badly as a Paltrow acceptance speech.

Here are the top 10 biggest Oscar upsets ever.  

Crash beats Brokeback Mountain to win Best Picture (2006)

Brokeback Mountain (pic: Reuters)

Crash was a decent film, but no one expected it to beat the critically acclaimed tear-jerking monster hit, Brokeback Mountain .

Starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal as two gay cowboys struggling to come to terms with their sexuality, Brokeback Mountain was considered a shoe-in for the award.

Crash, a drama about racial and social tensions in LA had already won two other Oscars: Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing during the night, but there were audible gasps amongst the attendees when Jack Nicholson announced the winner.

He even raised a 'bet you didn't see that coming' eyebrow.


Gwyneth Paltrow beats Cate Blanchett to win Best Actress (1999)

Shakespeare in Love went into the race with 13 nominations, but no one really expected Gwyneth to win for her portrayal of Shakespeare's lover Viola.

She was great, yes, but many would argue (and did, loudly) that she wasn't as great as Cate Blanchett was playing the title role in Elizabeth.

Jack Nicholson handed out the award (again - we're sensing a theme here with the upsets. Maybe he just reads a different name out from the one on the card?) and Gwynnie went onto blub and weep through one of the most cringe-y speeches in Oscar history.

Serves the judges right.



Shakespeare In Love beats Saving Private Ryan to win Best Picture (1999)

Rex Shakespeare In Love
Rex Saving Private Ryan

Same year, same movie.

Don't get us wrong, we love Shakespeare In Love, but it was still a surprise to many when it beat Steven Spielberg's war epic, Saving Private Ryan , to win the Best Picture award .

A romantic comedy beating a heartrending trudge through the Normandy Landings? And it even starred Tom Hanks! Tom Hanks in a war epic surely should have guaranteed the win?

Apparently not. (This time though Harrison Ford delivered the 'upsetting' news).



Adrien Brody beats Nicolas Cage, Jack Nicholson, Michael Caine and Daniel Day Lewis to win Best Actor (2002)

Rex Adrien Brody kissing Halle Berry at the Oscar Awards in 2003

When the relatively unknown actor Adrien Brody (unknown in relation to his co-nominees) won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance as a Polish Jewish musician trying to survive World War II in The Pianist, he leapt on stage and snogged Halle Berry which was the best possible response to his fairly unexpected win.

His deservedness as the winner wasn't ever questioned, people were just surprised that he beat such an extraordinary group of Hollywood heavyweights. (Watch Nic Cage's face when Adrien's name is announced).

The best bit? When they tried to stop his speech by turning on the music and he told them to turn it off before finishing with an emotional anti-war plea which received a standing ovation.


Three 6 Mafia win Best Original Song (2005)

Rex Three 6 Mafia: Jordan Juicy 'J' Houston, Paul 'D.J. Paul' Beauregard and Cedric Coleman at the Oscars in 2006

This is our favourite Oscar shocker.

Rap trio Three 6 Mafia won the Best Original Song Oscar for their track called It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp which appeared in film Hustle & Flow.

Everyone thought Dolly Parton would win for her song Travelin' Thru for film TransAmerica, but she didn't, oh no.

Host Jon Stewart's comment summed up the general feeling of disbelief when he said, “Oscar count: Three 6 Mafia, 1. Martin Scorsese, 0," referring to the director's failure to win a single one of his five nominations up to that point.


Kathryn Bigelow beats James Cameron to win Best Director (2010)


Kathryn's win wasn't just noteworthy because she was the first woman to win the Best Director award in 80 years of Oscar history, but also because of who she beat - her ex-husband, James Cameron.

Cameron's Avatar was generally considered the sure thing, costing £150million pounds to create and making billions of pounds profit. Barbra Streisand, presenting the award called it "the most successful film ever made."

Bigelow's The Hurt Locker only cost £7million to make, but was hugely critically acclaimed and won six Oscars altogether.


Tommy Lee Jones beats Ralph Fiennes to win Best Supporting Actor (1994)

The Fugitive is a great film, but many grumpy people thought Tommy Lee Jones' portrayal of a policeman wasn't exactly Oscar-worthy.

It was good, but an Oscar? Really? When you consider that he beat Ralph Fiennes's performance as sociopath SS Commander Amon Goth who runs the Plaszow concentration camp in Schindler's List it seems even more surprising. 


Denzel Washington beats Will Smith to win Best Actor (2002)

Rex Denzel Washington at the Oscar Awards in 2002

Everybody thought this would be Will Smith's year.

He spent more than 12 months training for the title role in the epic Michael Mann film, Ali , and was generally considered to have been brilliant.

Denzel had also received good reviews for his performance as the corrupt cop Alonzo Harris in Training Day, but the film itself wasn't that highly rated.

Even if he played his role well, was it that great a role in the first place?

He also beat Russell Crowe who was nominated for his performance as mathematician John Nash in A Beautiful Mind and Sean Penn for his role in I Am Sam - both of whom were also considered more likely winners.


Rocky beats All The President's Men and Taxi Driver to win Best Picture (1977)

Rex A scene from the movie Rocky

Rocky was the film that made Sylvester Stallone into the mega-star he is today.

It was also the film that caused a right rumpus by winning the gong for Best Film at the 1977 Oscars.

The story of the underdog fighting for glory was perfectly echoed during the ceremony when it beat heavyweight titles All The President's Men and Taxi Driver.

Yo, Adrian! We did it!

(That's a quote from the film by the way, but everyone knows that, right?)


Marisa Tomei beat Miranda Richardson and Vanessa Redgrave to win Best Supporting Actress (1993)

Rex Marisa Tamei at the Oscar Awards in 1993

Who? Exactly.

Marisa was considered a wild card entry into this category which included Hollywood legends Miranda Richardson and Vanessa Redgrave.

But she only went and bloody won, didn't she? Her performance as Mona Lisa Vito in My Cousin Vinny beat off Miranda's in Damage and Vanessa's in Howard's End.