Just two nominations for Best Original Song

25 January 2012

by Shannon Andreucci

Elton John, Madonna, Chris Cornell, Lady Gaga and Mary J. Blige have all missed out on Academy Award nominations to a flock of animated blue birds and mischievous Muppets.

Out of the 39 tracks shortlisted for Best Original Song, only two have been selected for a shot at Oscar glory; Man or Muppet from Jason Segel's The Muppets and Real in Rio from the 3D animation feature Rio.

"I think that Man or Muppet should be nominated for an Academy Award. You can put that in print," said Segel. The comical actor worked with Flight of the Conchords’ Bret McKenzie on the soundtrack for The Muppets movie, which brought the famous Kermit the Frog and musical cohorts back to the big screen in 2011.

In the other corner of the Award ring stands Real In Rio, a multihued homage to the Brazilian animal kingdom, which was written and produced by Sérgio Mendes, Mikael Mutti, John Powell, Carlinhos Brown and Siedah Garrett. The musical comedy features performances by the likes of; Jesse Eisenberg, Jamie Foxx, Anne Hathaway, George Lopez, will.i.am and the Rio Singers.

Even though The National’s Think You Can Wait, from Paul Giamatti’s Win Win was heralded a sure-fire candidate for the nomination, the band’s own singer Matt Berninger was dubious of the possibility. “That doesn't seem like a short list, though, does it? 39 songs?" he told Rolling Stone. "I think we'll probably lose to a Muppets song, but you know, there's no shame in that."