"What Was Crash?" - Michelle Williams questions Brokeback Mountain's Oscars snub

Michelle Williams is best known for her vast acting range, as evidenced by numerous impactful roles throughout her career. The usually understated acting powerhouse was recently featured on an episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen and addressed what is almost universally considered one of the most glaring Oscar snubs in recent memory.

Her response to the situation was curt, as expected, when Andy brought up the topic,

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“I mean, what was Crash?”

Williams asked while discussing the continued impact of her film, Brokeback Mountain, clearly demonstrating a level of lingering frustration with the vehicle’s perceived lack of recognition.

The Full Context of Michelle Williams’ Comments

This situation dates all the way back to 2005 when both films were released. Time may heal all wounds, but has not helped in giving clarity to Williams and others about what happened at the Academy Awards that year.

Brokeback Mountain, directed by visionary Ang Lee, encapsulated a poignant story of a gay romance between two cowboys. It starred Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger as the leads and touched on certain topics that spoke to the disenfranchised homosexual minority in a raw, emotional, and authentic manner.

“People were so open about it. I just remember doing the junket. You don’t really get an opportunity to see a lot of grown men cry. That was the moment that I think that we all knew that it was going to be special.”

Not only did the film highlight a beautiful and tragic love story between two men, but it spoke out for the LGBTQ+ community in a way that had never been done prior. It’s especially fitting that these grievances were aired on Andy Cohen’s platform as he is openly gay and heavily involved in measures of advocacy himself.

British comedian John Oliver was also a guest on the show with Williams and took the opportunity to address the snub himself unprompted when doing a bit on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.

After the film’s snub originally sparked backlash within the larger Hollywood community, The Hollywood Reporter even went as far as polling hundreds of Academy members and asked them to recast their ballots; Brokeback Mountain was resoundingly re-voted as Best Picture in 2015, though the result was unofficial.

Ang Lee, who helmed the film, blamed the loss on the Academy’s homophobia. In an interview with IndieWire in 202,4, Lee stated,

“Back then, [Brokeback Mountain] had a ceiling. We got a lot of support — up to that much. It has that feeling. I wasn’t holding a grudge or anything. It’s just how they were.”

Clearly, this is an example of a film that suffered from boldly exploring subject matter ahead of its time. While the Oscars mishap will never be overturned, everyone involved in the making of Brokeback Mountain can take comfort in the fact that the film’s impact was and continues to be undeniable and has created a safe space for queer stories to exist in the modern landscape of the entertainment industry.

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