Scarlett Johansson's performance in Her, in which she plays the voice of a computer operating system, has been ruled ineligible for nomination for the Golden Globe award for best supporting actress – despite being allowed to enter in the acting races for the Academy awards and the Screen Actors' Guild awards.
Her, directed by Spike Jonze and starring Joaquin Phoenix as an office worker who falls in love with said voice, named "Samantha", has been much talked up on the awards circuit. Though Johansson's role is strictly voice-only, she has already scooped the best actress gong at the recent Rome film festival. However, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which runs the Golden Globes, told distributors Warner Brothers that Johansson would not be put forward for consideration.
Even though Johannson may still be eligible for the Oscars and SAG's awards, no voice-only actor has ever been nominated for an acting award. Motion-capture performance, as exemplified by Andy Serkis's acclaimed work in The Hobbit and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, has never been recognised by the major acting awards either.
The Golden Globe awards ceremony takes place on 12 January, 2014 in Los Angeles.