Comments on: Does anyone know why Brad Renfro was left out of the Oscars tribute montage?

Question: Does anyone know why Brad Renfro was left out of the Oscars tribute montage?

easy_being_green — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:32:20 -0800

Does anyone know why Brad Renfro was left out of the Oscars tribute montage?

I've read the statements and officially the Academy says that they can't include everyone due to time constraints, but Renfro died shortly before Heath Ledger and he was mentioned.

Does anyone know the politics behind who gets included? I doubt it's because of drug politics because I think Chris Farley was included when he died of an illegal-drug overdose. Renfro was never in an Oscar-nominated film, but neither was Farley. (I don't think.)

I'm curious why someone might be overlooked for the montage.

By: moxiedoll

moxiedoll — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:36:47 -0800

There was a cut off date for this year's ceremony - I forget what the date was, but Renfro didn't make it. Ledger got in just under the wire.

By: nitsuj

nitsuj — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:37:52 -0800

The montage said February 1, if I remember correctly. Renfro died January 15.

By: moxiedoll

moxiedoll — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:40:45 -0800

(oh no. I just did some research to confirm the thing I thought I was right about and was sure I'd read somewhere - and I was wrong. Seriously, if you knew how much I hate being wrong, you'd feel worse for me then you do for all the dead people in the oscar montage put together).

By: Roman Graves

Roman Graves — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:42:35 -0800

Heath Ledger died after Renfro, moxiedoll. If I had to make an honest guess, it's because Brad Renfro was the kind of actor you'd choose to cut for time constraints. He wasn't terribly popular or highly-acclaimed.

By: violetk

violetk — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:43:02 -0800

i believe it's because he wasn't considered as big a star. i mean, heath ledger was a pretty gig star and brad renfro's last starring move was over a decade ago.

roy scheider didn't make the tribute this year because he missed the cut off date. i imagine he'll be in it next year.

By: JPowers

JPowers — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 20:50:26 -0800

TMZ detailed this.

By: drjimmy11

drjimmy11 — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:11:52 -0800

i believe it's because he wasn't considered as big a star.

and agents and makeup artists are?

I'm thinking there's no conceivable way they could omit Ledger. But the last thing they want is two drug deaths in a row tarnishing their image, and Renfro was minor enough they could get away with it.

This is the same kind of distasteful image management for middle America that we saw elsewhere, in the show, when "the troops" just happened to present an Oscar just before the doc about Iraq won.

By: nitsuj

nitsuj — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:17:31 -0800

More from TMZ:

"A flack tells us a small group of people make extremely difficult choices but refused to say what criteria are used to make those decisions. She added we shouldn't waste our time cause no one would discuss it further."

By: Bookhouse

Bookhouse — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 22:02:04 -0800

i believe it's because he wasn't considered as big a star.

and agents and makeup artists are?

No, makeup artists and and agents are members and friends of the Academy.

By: miss lynnster

miss lynnster — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 22:14:27 -0800

My understanding was that due to time constraints they felt they had to edit the list and he didn't make the cut. Since so many people have made note of the omission, I've also heard that they are now considering that it might've been a bad call. But again, that's just word of mouth I've heard, not any kind of official statement or anything.

By: thebrokenmuse

thebrokenmuse — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 22:41:31 -0800

I believe that you have to have been in an Academy recognized film in order to be in the tribute.

By: Locative

Locative — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 04:09:28 -0800

Renfro was in an Academy recognized film: The Client, for which Susan Sarandon was nominated for an Oscar. He was also in Ghost World, which was nominated for best screenplay. I don't get why that doesn't count for something, at least.

By: misanthropicsarah

misanthropicsarah — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:45:48 -0800

phil: because it's a question that does have an actual answer. it's just that in this case, the academy isn't providing the actual answer, so none of us can give more than speculation.

By: jacquilynne

jacquilynne — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 07:19:14 -0800

I gather the academy is deliberately trying to remind people that not everyone who is important in Hollywood is an actor when they put that reel together. So they deliberately list costume designers, makeup artists, producers, etc, who might are not well known names or faces outside of people who are actually in the business of making movies. It's not meant to be a list of famous people who died, but a list of influential or respected movie people who died, and Brad Renfro barely qualifies on 'famous' and apparently not at all on 'influential or respected'.

By: gnomeloaf

gnomeloaf — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:29:04 -0800

Brad Renfro wasn't the only one who got left out of a montage that night.

By: thebellafonte

thebellafonte — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:37:42 -0800

That guy from Apt Pupil is dead? Holy shit!

By: jpdoane

jpdoane — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 14:11:22 -0800

Well, I have heard of Heath Ledger and Chris Farley, and I have never heard of Brad Renfro. I suspect there are many people like me out there

By: hadjiboy

hadjiboy — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 06:35:56 -0800

Brad Renfro was the guy who starred in The Client (based on a John Grisham novel). And then later in Apt Pupil with Sir Ian Mckellen (directed by the guy who made The Usual Suspects).

He also starred opposite Thora Birch and Scarlett Johansson in a movie who's name is escaping me now... Ghost World I think.

He was a good actor, they should've included him in the montage.

(Oh yeah--just took a look at his IMDb page, and he also starred in Sleepers, where he played a young Brad Pitt. Very evocative movie; would highly recommend it.)