Zendaya in the movie “Challengers” looking disgusted

By Quinton Prudhomme
Co-Editor-in-Chief

“Challengers” was not nominated for a single Oscar, despite being nominated for four Golden Globes and winning for Best Original Score.

Now, I understand that not every halfway decent movie gets an award, but there are so many opportunities where “Challengers” is by far and away the better picture.

I reviewed “Challengers” last May and it was one of the best movies I saw in 2024 with standout performances by Mike Faist and Zendaya. The film follows tennis prospects Tashi Duncan and her complicated love triangle with fellow tennis players Patrick Zweig and Art Donaldson. Art and Patrick are a tennis duo that vie for the affection of superstar prospect Tashi over the course of many years.

But it’s not the acting I want to talk about; Best Original Score is the category I am mainly upset about.

The score in “Challengers” is a retro-electronic soundtrack filled with banger after banger composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, both known from Nine Inch Nails. The score was something that kept me enthralled in the characters’ intense situationship. No matter if you don’t really like electronic music or you feel something else should win an Oscar, it is undeniable that “Challengers” deserved at least a nomination. Especially compared to “Emilia Pérez,” “The Brutalist,” “Conclave,” “Wicked” and “The Wild Robot,” which were all nominated.

Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor after winning their golden globe for best original soundtrack for the film “The Social Network” in 2011

“Emilia Pérez” was one of the worst movies I saw in 2024. The music often conflicted with what was on screen and the singing was just not good. The film couldn’t decide if it wanted to be a drama filled soap opera, or a “Fast and Furious” film.

Despite the awkward and clunky everything of “Emilia Pérez,” it is tied for the second-most nominated film in Oscar history. “Emilia Pérez” shares this prestige with films like Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer”, Damian Chazelle’s “La La Land” and so many more incredible films.

While “The Brutalist” does have a backing piano track that stays consistent throughout the film, I don’t feel like it was worthy of the Best Original Score nomination. When watching the movie, the music is a nice highlight but nothing more than that.

Don’t get me started on “The Wild Robot” nomination for Best Original Score. The music is outdated folk that you would find in a Ford Bronco commercial. Completely unreasonable to even have this in the same conversation as “Wicked,” “Conclave” and especially “Challengers”. I’m not saying this because it is a children’s movie and “The Wild Robot” is my animated movie of the year even, but it being nominated for Best Original Score is just absurd.

The score in “Challengers” also seems to have taken on its own life in TikTok and even on streaming services. As of right now the main “Challengers” theme has 8.8 million streams on Spotify alone, when compared to “Emilia Pérez,” whose most streamed song on Spotify sits at 1.3 million streams. It is also pertinent to note that that song is sung by Selena Gomez. Selena Gomez has 40 million monthly listeners on Spotify mind you, and only 2.5% said “I’d give this a shot.”

Audiences everywhere adored “Challengers” as it grossed $96 million and has an 88% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a 75% from audiences. It is clear that “Challengers” is loved by all, and has the artistic spirit to warrant an Oscar nomination.

I know this is said every year when award season comes around, but the Academy got it wrong this time.