The annual Golden Raspberry Awards — otherwise known as the Razzies — have never been particularly edgy or clever. In a way, their blandness makes them the perfect anti-Oscars. Their picks for the worst in cinematic achievement in 2018 offer few surprises — but that’s just how they roll. To wit: One of this year’s nominees is Donald J. Trump, all thanks to his unwitting appearances in Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 11/9 and its exact opposite, Dinesh D’Souza’s nonsensical right-wing screed Death of a Nation. It’s the kind of joke you’d expect the Razzies to make, and they didn’t disappoint.
Not that a lot of the nominations weren’t deserved; they usually are. Gotti, the hilariously inept apologia for the notorious mobster directed by Entourage’s “E,” scored six nominations. (Sadly, John Travolta’s speedboat movie was snubbed.) Ditto the roundly unloved Will Ferrell-John C. Reilly reunion Holmes & Watson. The aforementioned Death of a Nation nabbed four, including two separate ones for Trump: one for Worst Actor and another for Worst Screen Combo, i.e., “Donald J. Trump & His Self Perpetuating Pettiness,” which fair enough. Nation also received one for Worst Remake, with Team Razzies claiming it’s a redo of D’Souza’s previous sorta-doc Hillary’s America, which isn’t even accurate as Nation is somehow even worse.
Some of the other jokier noms include a Combo one for “Johnny Depp & His Fast-Fading Film Career.” (Weirdly, Depp’s two nominations are for his voicework in Sherlock Gnomes when they could have easily gone with his co-starring role in the Fantastic Beasts sequel.) Kellyanne Conway and Melania Trump also got cited for their appearances in Fahrenheit 11/9. They also didn’t like Ludacris voicing a dog in Show Dogs, for some reason, nor Amanda Seyfried in something called The Clapper.
Actually, there was one surprise: The Razzies’ disdain for the almost totally forgotten horror film Winchester. That received four noms, including one for star Dame Helen Mirren, which simply seems rude. You’d think they’d know the star of Excalibur would have a lifetime pass, but what would you expect from the organization that, in its first year, nominated Stanley Kubrick?
The complete list of nominations is below:
Worst Picture
Gotti
The Happytime Murders
Holmes & Watson
Robin Hood
Winchester
Worst Actress
Jennifer Garner, Peppermint
Amber Heard, London Fields
Melissa McCarthy, The Happytime Murders and Life of the Party
Helen Mirren, Winchester
Amanda Seyfried, The Clapper
Worst Actor
Johnny Depp (Voice Only), Sherlock Gnomes
Will Ferrell, Holmes & Watson
John Travolta, Gotti
Donald J. Trump (As Himself), Death of a Nation and Fahrenheit 11/9
Bruce Willis, Death Wish
Worst Supporting Actor
Jamie Foxx, Robin Hood
Ludacris (Voice Only), Show Dogs
Joel McHale, The Happytime Murders
John C. Reilly, Holmes & Watson
Justice Smith, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
Worst Supporting Actress
Kellyanne Conway (As Herself), Fahrenheit 11/9
Marcia Gay Harden, Fifty Shades Freed
Kelly Preston, Gotti
Jaz Sinclair, Slender Man
Melania Trump (As Herself), Fahrenheit 11/9
Worst Screen Combo
Any Two Actors or Puppets (Especially in Those Creepy Sex Scenes), The Happytime Murders
Johnny Depp & His Fast-Fading Film Career (He’s doing voices for cartoons, fer kripesakes!), Sherlock Gnomes
Will Ferrell & John C. Reilly (Trashing Two of Literature’s Most Beloved Characters), Holmes & Watson
Kelly Preston & John Travolta (Getting BATTLEFIELD EARTH type Reviews!), Gotti
Donald J. Trump & His Self Perpetuating Pettiness, Death of a Nation & Fahrenheit 11/9
Worst Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel
Death of a Nation (remake of Hillary’s America…)
Death Wish
Holmes & Watson
The Meg (rip-off of Jaws)
Robin Hood
Worst Director
Etan Cohen, Holmes & Watson
Kevin Connolly, Gotti
James Foley, Fifty Shades Freed
Brian Henson, The Happytime Murders
The Spierig Brothers (Michael and Peter), Winchester
Worst Screenplay
Death of a Nation,Written by Dinesh D’Souza & Bruce Schooley
Fifty Shades Freed, Screenplay by Niall Leonard, from the Novel by E.L. James
Gotti, Screenplay by Leo Rossi and Lem Dobbs
The Happytime Murders, Screenplay by Todd Berger, Story by Berger and Dee Austin Robinson
Winchester, Written by Tom Vaughan and The Spierig Brothers
(Via THR)
