- Several actors were left out of the 2025 Oscars In Memoriam segment.
- Fans are particularly upset that Michelle Trachtenberg and Tony Todd were snubbed.
- People are always left out because of limited space and who chooses the In Memoriam list.
It’s that time of year again — time to be mad about the people left off of the In Memoriam segment at the Oscars.
Without fail, the annual montage that pays tribute to Hollywood’s fallen courts controversy. As only a few minutes of the hourslong ceremony, there are always names missing from the list; it’s simply impossible to include everyone with a film credit who has died.
This year was no exception, and viewers were particularly angry about a few of them. Most noteworthy was the omission of Michelle Trachtenberg. The 39-year-old “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” star, who had her breakout film role as a child actor in “Harriet the Spy,” died on Wednesday.
While you might think the recency of her death simply means the In Memoriam editors didn’t have time to add her, that’s not the case. Gene Hackman, whose death was announced after Trachtenberg’s, was prominently featured in the closing moments of the montage and spotlighted in the introduction by his friend and costar Morgan Freeman.
Several other noteworthy actors were excluded from this year’s In Memoriam, including “Candyman” actor Tony Todd, “Beverly Hills 90210” and “Heathers” star Shannen Doherty, “Titanic” and “Lord of the Rings” star Bernard Hill, and “Black Christmas” and the 1968 “Romeo and Juliet” star Olivia Hussey.
How the Academy decides who gets into the In Memoriam segment
There’s no simple formula for determining whether someone makes it into the Oscars In Memoriam tribute. The montage includes a mix of on-screen talent, writers and directors, and below-the-line folks, meaning there’s no shortage of potential honorees to choose from.
So, how does the list get curated? As it turns out, the executive producers of the awards show aren’t the ones who have that task. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it’s the job of a secret executive committee which is composed of members from all 19 of the Academy’s branches.
Michael Schulman, an Academy Awards expert who wrote the book “Oscar Wars,” told THR that the composition of the committee is also a reason why a recognizable actor like Shannen Doherty may have been passed over in favor of a less commonly known cinematographer. Being prominent specifically in film (not TV or another medium) is also a factor, albeit a very subjective one.
A source close to the Academy told THR that people who have won Oscars or a Governors Award have priority, then those who have won the Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards. Nominees for those awards are in the next tier for consideration.
