Samuel L. Jackson: Not in the Movie Poster; No Oscar Nomination
I think it is clear that Samuel L. Jackson's Stephen is one of the most evil and cruel villains in movie history, and presented in a daring manner: as the "House Negro" who has come, over the years, to think he has the same status of his white slave owner and takes pleasure in lording over, terrifying, subjecting to chase and capture, and sometimes beating the blacks under his supervision.
It is a horrifying study of a man who has pretty much gone insane and imagined himself as something he is not (for his slave master, Leo's Calvin Candie, does claim rank and verbally strikes Stephen down when he gets too "uppity" himself.) He will NEVER be Candie's equal, even if he is smarter than Candie and sees the scam from Django and Schultz that Candie does not.
And then there is the way that Jackson LOOKS as Stephen. He's been given snow white hair to suggest an old man -- Stephen's age has only hardened his insanity and locked in his cruelty to other blacks. His face is clean shaven -- no cool moustaches or beards for Samuel L. in THIS picture.
And he looks for all the world like a now banned(I think) food character "Uncle Ben" of rice fame(to some of us of an older age) plus there were MANY black actors given that "Uncle Ben" look in the movies of the 30s and 40s.
Put it all together and:
ONE: Jackson does NOT appear in the main movie poster for Django Unchained. Leo's there; "lead" Jamie Foxx is there, and co-lead Christoph Waltz is there) and ready to win his Oscar for this movie. But Samuel L. Jackson -- certainly a draw to match Foxx and Waltz, if not Leo -- is LEFT OUT OF THE POSTER.
TWO: There was no Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. I'm not sure if the producers actually put Jackson up for one, but if they did...the Oscar voters couldn't see their way clear. I know that "snubs" are a relative term - "five were found better," but Jackson's performance is so powerful in both its villainy and its examination of a dark side of the slave trade that -- I can only assume voters did not want to award such a character.
I may be wrong about the Oscar snub -- I have no way of knowing -- but I am NOT wrong about the movie poster. Jackson ain't there.
Nonetheless, an unforgettable character and a great performance by Jackson.
PS. Possibly Jackson's best scene is his long - sometimes FUNNY -- monologue to Foxx(who is hanging naked, upside down, having just escaped castratinon) in which not only does Jackson say awful villainous things, but thanks to lighting and camera angle, his FACE takes on a scary, evil ambiance. It is where his perofrmance reaches both a vocal and facial peak -- with great help from Tarantino's great lines, of course.