Alex Carson
At the 2023 Oscar ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented their traditional segment that highlighted the people in the film and TV business that we lost last year. It’s always a touching montage, In Memoriam, of people in the business, ranging from famous stars whom everyone passes away, to people that were well known, but whom the audience isn’t aware had died, to some of the less known but equally important people in the business.
And despite the best intentions of the Academy’s tribute video, there seem to be some fairly important and big names left out every year. This years Oscar broadcast was no different, and immediately after the presentation of the In Memoriam section, people took to social media to lament some of the people who were missing from the tribute. In this video, we’ll take a look at some of those snubs. So stick around, as Facts Verse presents: The Oscars’ In Memoriam Tragically Left Out These Huge Stars
In Memoriam Tribute Video
The In Memoriam video was a heartfelt and touching tribute this year, and contained a myriad of people who were talented and beloved. 2022 was a year that saw its fair share of big losses, including names like Rachel Welch, Ray Liotta, James Cahn, and Angela Lansbury. It also had many directors, writers, and other folks who work primarily behind the camera. And for fans of the people included in the video, it was a fitting tribute. That included the presenter of the video himself, John Travolta. John notably lost two of his friends and former co-stars: Olivia Newton-John and Kirstie Alley. He had started alongside Alley in the Look Who’s Talking movies and with Newton-John in Grease. Travolta moves by the moment, as he holds back tears at the loss of his dear friends. And yet, there were some names that weren’t a part of the montage…
Paul Sorvino
The Sorvino family has been a part of Hollywood for decades now, so this one was a pretty big shock to a lot of people. Legendary actor Paul Sorvino passed away in July of 2022, after a lengthy and prolific career. He was born in 1939 in Brooklyn, and made his film debut in Where’s Poppa, a film by Carl Reiner. Over the course of the next few decades, he was in a slew of movies and TV show episodes. Some of his bigger roles included a part in the classic Scorsese movie, Good Fellas, as well as his TV roles included playing Bruce Willis’s dad on Moonlighting, as well as playing Sergeant Phil Cerreta on season two of Law & Order.
The Tony Award
He also had a successful career on stage, even earning a Tony award for his performance in That Championship Season in 1972. He kept acting up until his death, appearing recently as Jeff Garlin’s father in The Goldbergs, and playing Frank Costello in The Godfather of Harlem from 2019 to 2021. Notably, he comes to his daughter’s defense when it reveals she’d been blacklisted in Hollywood by Harvey Weinstein, after she flatly rejected his sexual advances. Paul said at the time, “If I had known it, he would not be walking. He’d be in a wheelchair.”
His absence from the In Memoriam was doubly odd, considering not only are 2 of his 3 children actors as well, but his daughter Mira is an Academy Award winner herself. When he died in 2022, Mira posted a clip of her hugging her famous dad after she won. After the Oscar ceremony this year, Mira posted on Instagram about the snub. She writes: “Incredibly hurt and shocks that my father’s lifelong, irreplaceable, enormous contribution to the world of cinema overlook by whoever made that list.” She added that his fans and family know how great he was, and that she hoped the Academy was able to find a way to right this wrong.
Anne Heche
Another snub in the In Memoriam was Anne Heche, who died last year in August. She had a long and illustrious career, despite dying relatively young at age 53. Born in Ohio in 1969, Heche grew up in a fairly chaotic family dynamic, with parents who were often trying “get rich quick” schemes and constantly moving the family around. One of her first gigs as an entertainer was an odd one – she sang songs from the musical “Annie” to help drum up business for a burger stand on the Atlantic City boardwalk. But it was an early start to a career that took off not long after.
She was on the soap, ‘Another World” in the late 80’s, and garnered a Daytime Emmy award for her portrayal of twins Vicky Hudson and Marley Love. She was able to move into a film career, and gained recognition for her part in the indie film, Walking and Talking. From there she was able to launch a career that saw her in a serious of larger roles and bigger films. These included parts in Donnie Brasco, as well as Wag The Dog, Volcano, and I Know What You Did Last Summer. She played a lead role opposite Harrison Ford in Six Days, Seven Nights, and followed that up with a part in the modern remake of the classic Hitchcock film, Psycho.
If These Walls Could Talk
She added directing into the mix in the late 1990’s, and directed projects like a segment of HBO’s If These Walls Could Talk 2. As she continued acting into the 2000’s, focusing mostly on TV appearances and indie movies. She also found success on stage, and was a Tony Award nominee for her role in Twentieth Century on Broadway. She continued with a successful acting career for the next two decades, until her timely death. Her personal life was often the focus of tabloids, as she was in a relationship with Ellen DeGeneres for a number of years. She also had episodes of mental health issues, and it’s possible these contributed to her early passing.
Charlbi Dean
Charlbi Dean was a South African model and actress who sadly died at the age of 32 last year. Her death is the result of bacterial sepsis, a condition that becomes worse by her lack of a spleen. Doctors had removed it years prior after Charlbi was in a car accident. And while it may have been a live saving operation back then, it ultimately left her more susceptible to infections. Charlbi had a brief but impressive career, beginning as a successful model. She starts that career at age 6, and signs to an agency by the time she was 12. Her car accident happened in 2008, after which she took some time off from her career to heal.
But once she regained her health, she began to dive into the acting world. She found success fairly quickly, earning a part in the adaptation of Spud, as well as its sequel. She was also in two seasons of the show Black Lightning. But her most high profile gig cam eonly very recenfly. She played the lead in Triangle Sadness, a movie that was nominated for best picture at this years Oscars. It was the success of that movie that led many to wonder why the actress wasn’t included in the In Memoriam segment. She had garnered a lot of critical praise for her role in Triangle of Sadness, and it likely would have served as the springboard to a blossoming career.
Leslie Jordan
Character actor Leslie Jordan was enjoying a renaissance of sorts when he tragically passed on last year. Born in 1995 in Chattanooga, TN, Jordan was raised in a Southern Baptist household. As a young gay child, he never felt as if he fit in, and felt a lot of shame because of the church’s teachings. But he managed to escape that life and move to LA to pursue acting. Unfortunately, his fate in LA wasn’t that much better initially, as he began taking drugs, drinking a lot, and even getting arrested a few times. But he managed to slowly turn things around as his career started to get going.
He recently noted that he’d been sober for 13 years before he died. He found success primarily on stage and on TV. His most notable role was perhaps his turn as Beverley Leslie in Will & Grace. He reprised the popular role in the remake of the show as well. He had roles on shows like Hearts Afire in the 1990’s, and more recently American Horror Story and Call Me Kat. But oddly enough, Jordan may have achieved his most fame through his Instagram account during the COVID-19 pandemic. He posted quirky vids that went viral, and that ended up garnering nearly six million followers in 2020. It was that intense social popularity that contributed to the outcry that he was omitted from the In Memoriam segment.
Tom Sizemore
Tom Sizemore was an intense and talented actor who carved out a long and successful career, despite his constant struggles with addiction and issues with the law. He was born in 1961 in Detroit, and after getting his master’s degree at Temple University, he set his sights on becoming an actor. He found initial success at the tail end of the 1980’s, with roles in movies like Lock Up and “Born on the Fourth of July.” By the 1990’s, his career was taking off, and he became known as a reliable character actor who could round out a cast with grit, passion, and skilled acting.
As such, he was cast in big movies ranting from Passenger 57, to Heat, to Saving Private Ryan. His role in the TV movie, Witness Protection, earned him a Golden Globe nomination. Sadly, Sizemore became perhaps more famous for his issues with addiction than his acting career. He even agreed to put out a reality show called “Shooting Sizemore” which chronicled his struggles with heroin and meth. He also joined shows like Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, to help get past his addiction issues.
Now it’s time to hear from you. Do you think these actors should have been included in the In Memoriam segment? Let us know in the comments section below!
