Bradley Cooper Should Have Won His Oscar Years Ago

The Big Picture

• Bradley Cooper has received 9 Oscar nominations throughout his career, showcasing his range and talent as an actor, as well as his skills behind the scenes.
• Despite his nominations, Cooper has yet to win an Academy Award, facing tough competition from other highly regarded actors in the industry.
• One year that stands out as the year he should have won is 2019, for his outstanding performance as a troubled musician in A Star Is Born, a film that he also directed, wrote, and produced.

Receiving an Academy Award nomination can be such an accomplishment for an actor. It even starts to become more exciting as the same actors begin to gain more nominations year after year. But then you start to wonder why they haven’t won one by now. Surely, actors with eight or more nominations like Glenn Close and Peter O’Toole must have won one by now, but no. Many talented actors have accumulated quite a few Oscar nominations over the years without garnering any wins. Among those names are some renowned actors who should have received one by now, like Bradley Cooper

Bradley Cooper is an actor with range and one that many have enjoyed watching since he first burst onto the scene in 2009 with the blockbuster comedy hit, The Hangover. Since then, his career has taken off in many directions as he has taken on many great, diverse roles that have garnered him 9 Oscar nominations. Four out of the five are for acting and the others include some behind-the-scenes work, including Best Adapted Screenplay. Cooper has evolved into a renowned actor since he first stepped onto the screen. He can take on a multitude of roles that allow him to embody diverse characters and step behind the screen to take on directing. From the current Oscar buzz surrounding him for his work in Maestro, it’s time to look back at the year he should have won his Oscar.

When Was Bradley Cooper First Nominated for an Oscar?

In 2013, Bradley Cooper gained his first Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for Silver Linings Playbook. In the film, Cooper plays Patrizio “Pat” Solitano Jr., a man with bipolar disorder who has just been released from a mental institution under the care of his parents. Cooper co-led the film with Jennifer Lawrence, who played Tiffany, a recently widowed woman who is also struggling with her mental health. Cooper’s role provided a new and authentic perspective of a person navigating through their mental illness. This role allowed him to go inside the mind of a humorous yet serious character and opened the doors for more challenging roles.

The roster of talent that year was highly competitive and strong. Cooper’s competition was a pretty tough one that year as the other nominees, including Hugh Jackman, Denzel Washington, Joaquin Phoenix, and Daniel Day-Lewis were already strong, notable actors in the industry. As an already two-time winner, Day-Lewis won the Academy Award that year for his role as the eponymous Lincoln. He also swept the other major awards that Cooper was nominated for that season: BAFTA, the Golden Globes, and the Screen Actors Guild. His costar, Lawrence, did take home her first Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.

The Other Oscar Nominations Bradley Cooper Received

The following year, Bradley Cooper burst back onto the scene and scored another Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in American Hustle. In the film, Cooper plays neurotic FBI Agent, Richie DiMaso, who catches conman Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale)and his partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) in a scheme and forces them to work with him in a scheme with the mafia. Teaming up again with Jennifer Lawrence and David O. Russell in this comedy-drama not only confirms their dynamic chemistry but also Cooper’s unique talent at tackling roles that freshen up his palette. However, Jared Leto‘s performance in Dallas Buyer’s Club was much stronger than his. Leto provided not only a memorable performance but one that just outshined the other nominees.

In 2015, Cooper subverted expectations and gained two nominations that year for Best Lead Actor and Best Picture for American Sniper. The film showed how transformative Cooper became when he took on the role of real-life Navy SEAL sniper, Chris Kyle. The film, directed by Clint Eastwood, challenged Cooper to portray Kyle in the authentic way of what war does to men. He was still up against stiff competition with Eddie Redmayne sweeping all the major awards that award season with his standout take on Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything. Michael Keaton was another strong favorite to win that same year for his remarkably refreshing work in Birdman.

Bradley Cooper Should Have Won His Oscar For ‘A Star Is Born’

In 2019, Bradley Cooper received his most recent acting Oscar nomination for his portrayal of an alcoholic country rock star, Jackson “Jack” Maine in A Star Is Born. In the film, Jack discovers Ally (Lady Gaga), a struggling singer-songwriter, performing on stage at a drag bar one night and falls in love with her performance. After he talks to her backstage, he decides to help her find fame with the immense talent she has as a songwriter. This is the film that took Cooper to the next level with his talent. He took audiences by storm with this unforgettable performance and that is why he should have won the Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role that year.

Cooper also directed, produced, and adapted this screenplay from a classic that has had some very popular remakes over the years. He told Entertainment Weekly that after he signed on, he already had plans on what he wanted this retelling to look like. He began to work with a vocal coach as he already had an idea of what he wanted his speaking and singing voice to sound like. “I knew that I couldn’t play me as this guy — I had to change everything,” says Cooper. The toxic lifestyle that the role required from him was evident in his performance. Jack’s long battle with alcoholism has finally caught up to him in the scene when Ally wins her first Grammy. Jack drunkenly stumbles on stage during her acceptance speech and ruins a moment that means so much to her.

A Star is Born was Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut with this film, which earned him three Academy Award nominations that year. He scored Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay as well as Best Lead Actor. Unfortunately, it was a tough call that year as Rami Malek‘s performance as the iconic Freddie Mercury Bohemian Rhapsody won the Oscar. Be that as it may, it was the year Cooper should have won the Oscar as he delivered a more riveting and emotional performance that warranted plenty of tears from this viewer. A Star Is Born allowed him to fully embrace the role of this dark character and helped him branch out to write and direct more films. With plenty of Oscar buzz in the air and publications now releasing their shortlists, there is still time for Cooper to swoop in for a win he is long overdue.

Watch Maestro on Netflix in the U.S.

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