The 97th Academy Awards are upon us and the major categories appear wide open. Top contenders have been mired in controversies, including this year’s leading Jewish-themed entry, “The Brutalist.” This three-and-a-half-hour saga about an architect who survives the Holocaust and embarks on an ambitious new project has been nominated for ten Academy Awards. Adrien Brody, already an Oscar winner for his performance in “The Pianist,” seemed poised as the frontrunner for the Best Actor award, until news broke that he had his Hungarian dialogue augmented by AI. It’s unclear whether this disclosure will sour Oscar voters on this performance. If it does, Brody’s László Tóth will join a long list of Jewish characters snubbed for Hollywood’s top honor. In the spirit of awards season, here’s the top six Jewish characters that should’ve won an Oscar…but didn’t.

Adam Sandler as Howard Ratner in “Uncut Gems”  (2019)

What does Adam Sandler have to do to get an Oscar nomination? Once known for puerile comedies like “Billy Madison” and “Happy Gilmore,” Sandler has since worked with esteemed auteurs like Noah Baumbach and Paul Thomas Anderson. And yet, his performance as gem dealer and gambling addict Howard Ratner, in “Uncut Gems” was on a whole other level. Ratner is a remarkable character. His instincts for the next score are spot-on, but his reckless pursuit of the big win is what makes him tragic. It’s unclear if the film was too nerve-rattling for voters, or if they just can’t see funny-man Sandler as a serious actor. You couldn’t even nominate him, Academy? For shame.

Michelle Williams as Mitzi Fabelman in “The Fabelmans” (2022)

Playing the mother of Steven Spielberg in his autobiographical film ought to put you squarely on Oscar voters’ radars. The movie was ultimately nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Actress for Michelle Williams as Mitzi Fabelman. Mitzi a turbulent, artistic soul who gave up her dreams of being a concert pianist to raise her son. By turns exuberant and anguished, Mitzi never ceases to be anything short of magnetic. “The Fabelmans” wound up getting blanked at the Oscars. Though she’s been nominated five times, Michelle Williams has still not won an Oscar.

John Goodman as Walter Sobchak in “The Big Lebowski” (1998)

“The Big Lebowski” may be the Coen brothers’ most iconic film, save for their masterpiece, “Fargo.” But while the latter film received seven Academy Award nominations and won two, “The Big Lebowski” went unrecognized. In what would now be a lock for a Best Supporting Actor nod, John Goodman gives a raucous performance as Walter, a Jew-by-choice who brings a gun to his Sunday bowling league and only breaks Shabbat if it’s a matter of life and death. The lack of Academy attention for Walter and the movie can be chalked up to comedies being largely ignored back in the 90s. Goodman likely would’ve been honored just to be nominated.

Lorraine Bracco as Karen Friedman in “Goodfellas” (1990)

In “Goodfellas,” Bracco’s Karen Friedman is a feisty, tough-talking Jewish woman from Brooklyn who falls for rakish Italian gangster Henry Hill. When Karen points a revolver at the camera and whispers, “Wake up, Henry,” it’s a scene that should go down in cinema history alongside Jack Nicholson’s “Here’s Johnny” and De Niro’s “You Talkin’ to Me?” Sadly, the Academy doesn’t usually like to give awards to first timers.

Harvey Fierstein as Arnold Beckoff in “Torch Song Trilogy” (1988)

Released in 1988, “Torch Song Trilogy” is Harvey Fierstein’s film adaptation of his Tony Award-winning play of the same name. It follows Arnold, a drag queen who falls in love with a model named Alan and attempts to foster a child with him. The tragic events that follow test Arnold’s resolve and his relationship with his mother (played by Anne Bancroft). Fierstein imbues Arnold with wit, panache, and a dollop of self-deprecating humor. Fierstein’s performance would surely have received more attention from the Academy today. Like Goodman, Fierstein was way ahead of The Academy.

Barbara Streisand as Yentl in “Yentl” (1983)

No actor has been quite as defiantly Jewish as Barbra Streisand. From Fanny Brice to Susan Lowenstein to Rosalyn Focker, Streisand has made a six-decade career of playing Jewish women on stage and screen. Streisand wrote, directed, produced, and starred in “Yentl,” but was largely ignored by the Academy. Yentl, an Orthodox Jewish girl desperate to study Talmud, sidesteps tradition by disguising herself as a boy to enroll in yeshiva, a school for Jewish boys. Streisand was considered a strong contender, at least for Best Director at the ’84 Oscars, but the musical only came away with Music and Production Design Awards. Streisand can’t get over this one (neither can we). The 97th Academy Awards will air Sunday, March 2 at 7:00 P.M. EST on ABC and Hulu.