The 2018 Oscars featured many serious moments, including spotlighting the Time’s Up movement. But the Sunday, March 4, ceremony might have flubbed the annual In Memoriam tribute, which honors stars who have died in the last year and always garners flack for forgetting people.
Adam West, Della Reese, Tom Petty, Jim Nabors, Glen Campbell, Powers Boothe, Dorothy Malone and Robert Guillaume were among those omitted from the segment. West starred as Batman on the 1960s TV show of the same name. Reese was known for her legendary role in Touched by an Angel. Nabors played Gomer Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show and later on his own spinoff. Campbell, though recognized more for his country music career, appeared in the 1969 version of True Grit and was Oscar-nominated for his song “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” in 2015. Malone won the 1957 best supporting actress award for Written on the Wind. Boothe appeared in Tombstone and Deadwood. Guillaume was an Emmy- and Grammy-winning actor known for Sports Night, Soap and The Lion King.
Ironically, the Academy’s In Memoriam tribute was set to Petty’s song “Room at the Top” (performed by Eddie Vedder), though the musician was not listed in the segment.
Some viewers expressed their outrage over the exclusions on social media.
“That was a beautiful tribute to some incredible artists, but where was Adam West?! That man gave so much to the world of film, TV, pop culture and comic books,” one fan tweeted.
“Since the #Oscars forgot Della Reese in their In Memoriam segment I will include her,” another shared.
“#RobertGuillaume was forgotten by #Oscars2018, but will always be treasured by the rest of us. RIP,” a viewer posted.
Some noted that the Academy also left out Bill Paxton, but the Twister actor died the day before the 2017 Oscars and was honored by friend Jennifer Aniston before last year’s In Memoriam tribute.
