Kate Winslet reflects on her Oscar losses before eventually winning in 2009. She is best known for playing Rose DeWitt Bukater opposite Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jack Dawson in James Cameron’s period romance Titanic, which earned her an Oscar nomination. However, over the next decade, Winslet would only be nominated but never to win. The actor received her first nomination in 1996 for playing a supporting role in Sense and Sensibility. She would receive additional nominations for Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Little Children until finally going home with an Oscar in 2009 for The Reader.
On the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Winslet spoke about her experience of being “nominated a few times” but “never won.” The actor revealed that her Oscar losses were never “a weight on the shoulders,” and the real career pressure is how to keep growing. The producer of the World War II drama Lee is still in awe at how far she has come over the years. Read her full quote below:
“No, it’s not a weight on the shoulders at all. I still today can’t believe I get to do this job and have this career and met some extraordinary people and still continue to learn.
Sh-t, I am actually producing. I am funding stuff and keeping things going.”
What Does Kate Winslet’s One Oscar Win Mean?
The Reader Challenged Her in Many ways
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that The Reader earned Winslet the Academy Award for Best Actress. She is known for portraying complicated women in independent films, and her role as Hanna Schmitz in the 2008 romance drama was widely considered one of her best performances. Winslet offered a vulnerable and authentic portrayal that differs from her other roles. As Hanna Schmitz, she was part of what made the character who she is due to her complexity. She puts her energy into hiding her biggest shame, which is that she can’t read, even if it means admitting guilt for crimes that she didn’t commit.
Revolving around her relationship with Michael, a 15-year-old boy she helped and became intimate with at 36, The Reader depicts a complicated story set in postwar Germany in the 1960s. Director Stephen Daldry notably gave The Titanic actor the freedom to co-create the character. In doing so, they created an original character who only exists in The Reader. The creative approach is different because Winslet became part of the formula that defined her role, instead of making herself into a role that was pre-written by others.
Our Take On Kate Winslet’s Five Oscar Losses
The Titanic Star Deserves More Oscars
Winslet is an actor who deserves more recognition than she already has. While Rose in Titanic is arguably her most memorable role, her performance as Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility is more deserving of an Oscar. There are a couple of times Winslet should have gone home with the award but didn’t. Still, the award-winning star never stops challenging herself and has played several nuanced and memorable characters throughout her career.
On the other hand, losing five times might seem like a discouragement, but it’s far from that. Winslet‘s nominations over the years proved that she has stayed atop of her field and has never let one win get to her head. Her role in Lee again proves her versatility and range as an actor. Her nominations are milestones that document her achievements as an actor.
Source: Happy Sad Confused Podcast
Kate Winslet
- Birthdate
- October 5, 1975
- Birthplace
- Reading, Berkshire, England
- Height
- 5 feet 7 inches