Doc Talk Podcast: Documentary Hated By Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Becomes Oscar Finalist, Plus Other Shortlist Shockers

Matthew Carey

20 December 2024 at 9:03 pm·2-min read

The documentary features remaining in contention for an Oscar nomination have been whittled down from 169 to a shortlist of a mere 15, a brutal culling that has inevitably left many filmmakers disappointed, and a select few in celebratory mode.

What were the harshest snubs? That question comes up for debate in a special Oscar-shortlist-reaction episode of Deadline’s Doc Talk podcast, hosted John Ridley, the Oscar-winning writer-director, and Matt Carey, Deadline’s documentary editor. We get into what Academy Documentary Branch members voted in, and the most surprising hopefuls they left out.

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One of the big omissions: a highly regarded film about an iconic Hollywood star who made a comeback after a near fatal accident dramatically altered his life.

One surprise inclusion: a film that takes a very unflattering view of Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. The prime minister was so angered by the documentary that he sued to block its unofficial premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September. That film takes its place on the Oscar shortlist despite having no U.S. distribution. Remarkably, a slew of films without domestic distribution partners managed to make the first cut.

Ridley explains why he was thrilled to see a particular Netflix documentary earn a shortlist slot – and why he finds it unforgivable that Doc Branch voters left out a film he considers one of the year’s best. We also parse the shortlist of documentary shorts – there, too, the field of contenders has been narrowed to a fortunate 15. One of them is co-directed by actress-filmmaker Rashida Jones, another is co-directed by a filmmaker best known for her documentary on late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

That’s on a special episode of the Doc Talk podcast, a production of Deadline and John Ridley’s Nō Studios. Listen to the episode above or on major podcast platforms including Spotify, iHeart and Apple.

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