Genres likefantasyare often overlooked when award season rolls around, but there are some fantasy films that have won film’s top prize and snagged Oscars. Since the beginning of major film awards like the Oscars or Golden Globes, fantasy and other genres have usually been left out of the conversation, and most awards go to dramas or straightforward comedies. Though there has been a push in recent decades to include more categories that celebrate technical achievement in filmmaking, fantasy is rarely considered for anything but the most obscure awards.
There have been some exceptions, and Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringstrilogy was one ofthe only fantasy films to win Best Pictureat the Academy Awards. However, those movies were also released at a unique time in Hollywood history, and nothing before or since has approached that level of award success. Fantasy isn’t the only genre left out in the cold, and films of the horror or sci-fi persuasion are also usually shunned from the Oscars. Only a small batch of fantasy films have even won Oscars, and the list contains more than a few surprising winners.
The films of Dr. Suesshave been hit or miss, and 2000’s grandiose adaptation ofHow the Grinch Stole Christmasis divisive to say the least. The Jim Carrey vehicle brought the beloved children’s book into the realm of live-action for the first time, butits muddled story and mean-spirited humor were derided by some critics. While it may hold a special place in the hearts of some viewers, Ron Howard’s blockbuster film was not expected to be considered during award season.
However,it was nominated for a trio of artistic Oscars, including Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. Rick Baker and Gail Rowell-Ryan would take home the Oscar for Best Makeup & Hairstyling at the 73rd Academy Awards, marking the only win the film would secure.
Already more than a decade into his impressive run of feature films, Tim Burton delivered the gothic horror fantasy filmSleepy Hollowin 1999. Taking Washington Irving’s story and cranking up the terror, Burton put his signature spin on the classic American tale and added plenty of unique visuals and spine-chilling moments. Because the film was horror and fantasy,Sleepy Hollowdidn’t appear as if it was going to have a presence at the Oscars.
Despite its status as a genre film,Sleep Hollowearned three Oscar nods, including Best Cinematography, which is usually saved for the more traditional features. In what was perhaps the most fitting tribute to the movie,Rick Heinrichs and Peter Young received the Oscar for Best Art Direction. It was largely their work that helped to bring Burton’s gothic vision to life.
8Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them (2016) - Best Costume Design
The Only Oscar In The Entire Harry Potter Franchise
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themis a spinoff of the belovedHarry Potterfranchise, and focuses on Newt Scamander, the legendary chronicler of the Wizarding World’s magical animals.The 2016 blockbuster was the first installment in thePotterfranchise since the original characters departed in 2011, and opened the door for more storytelling possibilities in other corners of the fantasy franchise.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
2016
74%
2018
36%
2022
46%
Interestingly,Fantastic Beastshas snagged theHarry Potterfranchise’s only Oscar to date witha win for Best Costume Design (Colleen Atwood). The original series of films were nominated on numerous occasions, but never won the grandest prize in the world of film.
In total, the originalHarry Potterseries was nominated for 12 Oscars across 8 movies.
Robin Williams is best known for his comedic parts, but 1998’sWhat Dreams May Comewas one of his earliest dramatic turns. The romanticfantasy box office flopsees Robin Williams play a recently-deceased man who arrives in the afterlife that he can manipulate using his imagination. The somewhat dour story was off-set by the movie’s state-of-the-art visuals, and it gained some Oscar buzz.
What Dreams May Comestraddles the line between the fantastical and the sort of heartfelt drama that Oscar voters usually gravitate towards.
Unlike a lot of other fantasy films,What Dreams May Comestraddles the line between the fantastical and the sort of heartfelt drama that Oscar voters usually gravitate towards. Despite this,it was only nominated in two technical categories, winning Best Visual Effects.
Adapting Lemony Snicket’s beloved children’s book series of the same name, 2004’sA Series of Unfortunate Eventswas appropriately grandiose and strange.Jim Carrey slots in as the rubber-faced villain, Count Olaf, but he’s joined by an ensemble cast of zany characters ripped straight from the pages of the books. While the film got decent reviews, the dark fantasy children’s film looked like it was going to be snubbed for any awards.
In a surprising twist,A Series of Unfortunate Eventsgained four Oscar nominations, including Best Original Score, though it was mostly relegated to the technical categories. When the movie eventually won Best Makeup, it became the second film starring Jim Carrey to earn such an accolade.
Nearly 30 years after he won the very first Best Makeup Oscar forAn American Werewolf in London, effects guru Rick Baker delivered stellar work on another lycanthropic horror fantasy film. 2010’sThe Wolfmanremade theUniversal Classic Monster movie of the same name, preserving its Old European setting but adding modern effects and scares.
The movie was a box office flop that got mostly negative reviews, but things weren’t all bad for Joe Johnston’s werewolf movie. Despite being everything that the Oscars usually despise,The Wolfmanwas nominated for Best Makeup, and it eventually won the award. It marked Rick Baker’s seventh win in the category.
Robert Zemeckis might be one of the most consistent filmmakers in Hollywood history, but 1992’sDeath Becomes Heris a forgotten piece of his filmography. The dark fantasy comedy adds in dashes of horror as well, and features an all-star cast including Bruce Willis, Goldie Hawn, and Isabella Rossellini. Even though it stars the Oscar magnet that is Meryl Streep,it essentially disqualified itself from competition because of its odd mix of genres.
One thing the early ’90s hidden gem had going for it was its impressive visual effects, and the film effectively utilized CGI to bring some of its more darkly humorous moments to life. It was only nominated in one category at the Oscars that year, winning Best Visual Effects.
Though the man himself has yet to win anything,Beetlejuicewas actually the first Tim Burton film to score an Oscar win. Burton’s wildly imaginative fantasy comedy needs no introduction, and it further established him as one of the freshest new voices in Hollywood going into the 1990s. While it may be one of the most beloved movies of its era, its quirkiness didn’t make it prime Oscar-bait.
However,one thing that really impressed Oscar voters in 1988 was the work of makeup artist Ve Neill, and she became only the second woman in history to win the relatively new award. Neill would go on to win two more Oscars throughout the ’90s forMrs. Doubtfireand another Tim Burton classic,Ed Wood.
2007’sThe Golden Compasswas envisioned as the beginning of the largerHis Dark Materialsuniverse, based on the books by Philip Pullman. Unfortunately,the epic fantasy film starring Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman failed to launch, and was considered a bit of a box office disappointment. Despite its failures,The Golden Compassdid have a few things going for it, including impressive visual effects.
The Oscars nominatedThe Golden Compassfor the Best Visual Effects category, which it won, and they were the only major American film awards that nodded toward the movie. Considering the size and scope of the movie, it managed to make very little impact on popular culture, and it’s one of the more forgettable fantasy films to win an Oscar.
Upping the ante and juicing the budget to heights never before seen in Hollywood,Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chestwas one of the peaks of the 2000s blockbuster. The swashbuckling heroes returned for another adventure, andDead Man’s Chestadded even more interesting fantasy lore. After the first movie was snubbed at the Oscars,it seemed inevitable that the sequel would garner some attention.
Nominated for four total Academy Awards,Dead Man’s Chesttook home the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. The singular win was fitting for the franchise, sincethe sequel’s CGI work is some of the best ever seen in film history. Nearly 20 years later, fewfantasymovies have been able to top the impressive work of the visual effects artists onDead Man’s Chest.
