The Oscars are the industry's most prestigious award. Winning one can change an individual's life, marking a turning point in their career or working as an acknowledgment of their career as a whole. For their part, the Razzies are the opposite, an award designed to "recognize" the worst of cinema.
Some actors are lucky enough to have been nominated for an Oscar; others have the misfortune of seeing themselves targeted by the Razzies. There are those who have both Oscar and Razzie nominations on their resumé. And then, some received both nominations in the same year; talk about a balanced career.
9 Christopher Walken, 2003
The new millennium started chaotically for Christopher Walken. The actor delivered one of his finest performances in Steven Spielberg's 2002 biopic Catch Me If You Can, playing the quietly deceiving Frank Abegnale Sr. Wlaken's work earned rave reviews, winning the SAG and BAFTA awards for Best Supporting Actor and receiving a richly-deserved Oscar nomination in the same category.
That same year, Walken co-starred in the box-office dud The Country Bears, playing the main villain. The film received negative reviews, with critics considering it boring and meandering. Walken earned a Razzie nomination for Best Supporting Actor, although he didn't win.
8 Alec Baldwin, 2004
Alec Baldwin received his first and only Oscar nomination for his supporting role in the 2003 crime film The Cooler. The plot centers on Bernie Lootz, a Las Vegas "cooler" whose bad luck brings misfortune to eager gamblers. When Bernie's love life turns around and brings him happiness, his ruthless boss, "Shelly" Kaplow, seeks to abruptly end it. Baldwin's portrayal of Kaplow was lauded and earned him an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actor.
Unfortunately, Baldwin's other 2003 release, The Cat in the Hat, received scathing reviews. Widely considered among the all-time worst Dr. Seuss adaptations, the film received numerous nominations at the 2004 Razzies, including Worst Supporting Actor for Baldwin.
7 Sandra Bullock, 2010
Sandra Bullock has a rare distinction: she's among the few individuals to win an Oscar and a Razzie in the same year, albeit not for the same role. Bullock won the former for her performance in the 2009 sports drama The Blind Side, where she played Leigh Anne Tuohy.
The Razzie came to her for her now-infamous work in the 2009 comedy All About Steve. For her role as a socially-awkward woman stalking a cameraman, Bullock earned scathing reviews, with many considering it the worst performance in her career. True to her honest and graceful personality, Bullock showed up at the Razzie ceremony and accepted her award.
6 Eddie Redmayne, 2016
A year after winning his first Oscar for his work in The Theory of Everything, Eddie Redmayne was back at the Dolby Theater. The English actor contended at the 2016 ceremony for his lead role in the biopic The Danish Girl, playing Lili Elbe, a Danish painter among the first recipients of gender-affirming surgery. Redmayne's work hasn't aged well, and the actor recently confessed accepting the role was "a mistake."
2016 was also the year when he received his first Razzie nomination. Redmayne's polarizing performance in Jupiter Ascending received negative reviews, and the actor won the Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor. While Jupiter Ascending is far from perfect, giving him the victory might've been too much.
5 Rooney Mara, 2016
2016 saw another acclaimed actor receive Oscar and Razzie nominations. Rooney Mara delivered a career-best in Todd Haynes' arresting romantic drama Carol. The actress received a Best Supporting Actress nomination, a clear case of Oscar category fraud since Mara is a lead in the film, plain and simple. However, she lost the award to Alicia Vikander, another case of category fraud.
Mara's other 2015 release, Joe Wright's Pan, was less successful. Mara faced whitewashing accusations for accepting the role of Tiger Lily, and the film received scathing reviews from critics. While Mara shouldn't have accepted the role, her performance wasn't bad enough to justify the Razzie nomination.
4 Naomie Harris, 2017
The ever-underrated Naomie Harris excels in Barry Jenkins' 2016 romantic drama Moonlight. As Chiron's mother, Harris is brutal, delivering a heart-wrenching portrayal of cruelty and regret that earned her a richly-deserved Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Harris also saw herself nominated at the 2016 Razzie ceremony, albeit not individually. Instead, Harris received a nomination as part of the ensemble of the manipulative and formulaic Will Smith drama Collateral Beauty. Harris' nod came in the Worst Screen Combo category, where the film's "entire cast of once respected actors" contended.
3 Adam McKay, 2019
Adam McKay is among Hollywood's most divisive figures. Many appreciate his humor and tone, whereas others consider it overrated and somewhat cheap. His 2018 film VICE was among the year's most polarizing films; however, it received eight nominations at the 2019 Oscars, including Best Picture and a Best Director nomination for McKay.
The prolific director and producer had another film in 2018, the Will Ferrell vehicle, Holmes & Watson. The film attracted overwhelmingly negative reviews and earned six nominations at the Razzies. As one of Holmes & Watson's producers, McKay won the Razzie for Worst Picture.
2 Melissa McCarthy, 2019
2018 saw another Oscar-Razzie combo come to life. Melissa McCarthy earned raves for her emotional, raw performance in Marielle Heller's black comedy biopic Can You Ever Forgive Me? For her portrayal of writer Lee Israel, McCarthy earned the best reviews of her career, receiving an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.
However, McCarthy also attracted an overwhelmingly negative reception for her other 2018 releases, the crime comedy The Happytime Murders and the comedy Life of the Party. The former earned six nominations at the 2019 Razzies, and McCarthy won Worst Actress for her work on both films.
1 Glenn Close, 2020
Glenn Close has received eight Oscar nominations throughout her long and revered career. Her latest came thanks to her supporting work in the divisive Ron Howard drama Hillbilly Elegy, an adaptation of the eponymous novel. The film polarized critics, although Close received mostly positive reviews, leading to an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Close's detractors also considered her performance Razzie-worthy and nominated her in the Worst Supporting Actress category. Close is the third individual to receive Oscar and Razzie nominations for the same performance; however, she won neither award.