“Five Oscar-Bait Roles That Took Home Razzies Instead”
Five Oscar-Bait Performances That Ended Up Winning Razzies Instead
There’s definitely a tried-and-tested formula when it comes to nabbing major film awards—one that countless actors are more than willing to follow. But when this strategic play for prestige goes sideways, the results can be brutally ironic. Many performers chasing gold have ended up on stage at the wrong ceremony entirely. Whether they teamed up with a respected auteur, took on a “meaty” role, or tackled heavy subject matter, their Oscar dreams crumbled under the weight of public and critical disappointment.
It’s a razor-thin line between “award-worthy” and “embarrassingly awful,” and patrolling that line is none other than the Golden Raspberry Awards—better known as the Razzies. Held annually, this tongue-in-cheek event celebrates the worst Hollywood has to offer, gleefully shaming the stars who thought they were on the path to Oscar glory.
Like it or not, the Razzies often offer a fascinating counterpoint to the Oscars, painting a clearer picture of what cinema looked like in a particular year. These performances all had the ingredients of a classic awards-season contender—but wound up in the Razzie hall of shame instead.
1. Daryl Hannah in Wall Street (1987, dir. Oliver Stone)
Oliver Stone’s Wall Street captured the ethos of Reagan-era capitalism with razor-sharp precision. Michael Douglas gave a career-defining performance as Gordon Gekko, earning both Golden Globe and Oscar wins. But while Douglas walked away with accolades, his co-star Daryl Hannah wasn’t so lucky.
Hannah played Darien Taylor, a glamorous interior designer entangled with both Gekko and Charlie Sheen’s character, Bud Fox. On paper, the role had award potential—stylish, emotionally conflicted, caught between power and morality. But Hannah later admitted she didn’t fully grasp her character, and it showed. Her performance felt disconnected and flat, leading to a Razzie win for Worst Supporting Actress in 1988. In a film otherwise praised for its sharp writing and performances, Hannah’s contribution stuck out for all the wrong reasons.
2. Kevin Costner in Wyatt Earp (1994, dir. Lawrence Kasdan)
Biopics are like catnip for Oscar voters—especially ones based on real, mythic American figures. Kevin Costner clearly had this in mind when he stepped into the boots of legendary lawman Wyatt Earp, reuniting with Dances With Wolves director Lawrence Kasdan. The aim was obvious: another prestige epic, another run at Oscar gold.
Unfortunately, Wyatt Earp arrived six months after Tombstone, a much better film covering the same ground, and it paled in comparison. Bloated, overly long, and emotionally hollow, the film flopped with audiences and critics alike. Costner’s stoic, wooden take on the gunslinger didn’t help. That year, instead of being invited to the Dolby Theatre, Costner was “honored” with the Razzie for Worst Actor—beating out the likes of Steven Seagal and Sylvester Stallone. Not exactly the company you want to keep during awards season.
3. Jon Voight in Megalopolis (2024, dir. Francis Ford Coppola) & Reagan (2024, dir. Sean McNamara)
The Razzies aren’t known for subtlety, and when Jon Voight racked up a series of unwatchable performances in 2024, they made sure to let him know. He won Worst Supporting Actor for a whopping four films that year, with the biggest offenders being Megalopolis and Reagan.
Francis Ford Coppola’s long-gestating sci-fi disaster Megalopolis was supposed to be a visionary swan song from one of cinema’s greatest minds. Instead, it was an incoherent mess—heavy on visual spectacle, light on logic. Voight’s performance was a particular low point, bordering on parody. Then came Reagan, in which he played a grizzled ex-KGB agent in a film that also saw Dennis Quaid portray the former president with all the subtlety of a Saturday Night Live sketch. Presidential biopics often scream “Oscar bait”—but this one just screamed. Voight’s dual failures earned him Razzie infamy, reminding everyone that no one is too “respected” to flop.
4. Melanie Griffith in A Stranger Among Us (1992, dir. Sidney Lumet)
Melanie Griffith may come from a celebrated Hollywood lineage—daughter of Hitchcock muse Tippi Hedren, mother of Dakota Johnson—but she also holds a unique place in Razzie history. In 1993, she took home Worst Actress for two performances, one of which was in Sidney Lumet’s A Stranger Among Us.
The film aimed high: Griffith played a New York detective who goes undercover in a Hasidic Jewish community to solve a murder. With Lumet behind the camera and a premise rooted in cultural exploration, this had all the trappings of an awards contender. Instead, it came off as tone-deaf and unintentionally hilarious, with Griffith’s fish-out-of-water routine feeling more like a sitcom pilot than a prestige drama. Her other Razzie-winning role that year, in the WWII drama Shining Through, only sealed the deal. Sometimes, good intentions just aren’t enough.
5. Sofia Coppola in The Godfather Part III (1990, dir. Francis Ford Coppola)
Sofia Coppola’s role in The Godfather Part III is one of the most infamous examples of Hollywood nepotism backfiring. When Winona Ryder dropped out of the film last minute, director Francis Ford Coppola cast his daughter Sofia as Mary Corleone—a critical role in one of cinema’s most revered sagas.
Sofia, who had little acting experience and no desire to pursue it seriously, found herself in way over her head. Her performance was widely panned, lacking depth and emotional nuance, and it stood out starkly against the otherwise solid (if not legendary) ensemble. Critics and audiences were merciless, and the Razzies agreed—awarding her Worst Supporting Actress in 1991.
Sofia never acted again, but went on to build a highly respected directing career. Still, her Razzie remains a reminder that not even the power of The Godfather franchise can rescue a truly miscast performance.
Final Thoughts
There’s nothing wrong with chasing the Oscars—many careers have been built on that very pursuit. But when the formula is misjudged, or the performance doesn’t land, it’s not just a failed shot at glory—it becomes cinematic infamy. The Razzies may be tongue-in-cheek, but their picks often serve as cautionary tales: Oscar bait doesn’t always work. And sometimes, it bites back—hard.
