Bradley Cooper was nominated for an Oscar at the 85th annual Academy Awards, and while he attended the show and cheered on his Oscar-winning co-star Jennifer Lawrence, he reportedly did not want to win himself. In an interview with British GQ, reported by the UK’s Metro, Cooper spoke about the death of his father and the impact it had on him. Cooper’s father passed away in 2011 at the age of 71, an event that Cooper says gave him major perspective. “I watched him dying and I was there by his bed watching him, breathing with him, and then I saw his last breath and he was gone,” he said. “I experienced the whole thing. And that was a watershed moment that I was privileged to experience. And it changed everything. Nothing has ever been the same since.” He went on to add, “The beauty is that I just don’t sweat s—t anymore.” It seems that for Cooper, the “s—t” is an Academy Award. “I don’t want to win an Oscar,” he said. “It would change nothing. Nothing. The things in my life that aren’t fulfilled would not be fulfilled. Career-wise, right now, it’s better that I don’t win one. I don’t want to win. I don’t.” Cooper wasn’t the only actor nominated at this year’s Oscars to express conflict over the awards. Last year, Joaquin Phoenix infamously blasted the Academy Awards as “bulls—t.” “I think it’s total, utter bulls—t, and I don’t want to be a part of it,” Phoenix said during an interview with Elvis Mitchell for Interview magazine. “I don’t believe in it. It’s a carrot, but it’s the worst-tasting carrot I’ve ever tasted in my whole life. I don’t want this carrot. It’s totally subjective. Pitting people against each other … It’s the stupidest thing in the whole world.” Phoenix was nominated alongside Cooper in the Best Actor category for his role in “The Master.” In the end, neither Cooper nor Phoenix won Best Actor. They were edged out by Daniel Day-Lewis, who took home the award for his role in “Lincoln.”
