Ethan Hawke has jokingly labeled himself a loser over the awards missing from his shelf. The actor owns a résumé that most performers would happily frame and hang in the hallway. Still, one kind of trophy keeps slipping past him, and the reason he gives is genuinely hilarious. Zach Baron brought up the numbers during a sit-down, and the answer that came back was equal parts modest and mischievous.

While most actors chase statuettes, Hawke has his eye on a different kind of trophy, one handed out by juries.

Ethan Hawke called himself a loser because no festival jury has ever handed him a prize. His career includes five Oscar nominations, three for acting and two for writing the Before films. 

“I’m just a loser. I think it’s just envy that’s kept me from the prize," he said during GQ’s One More Question interview.

He then added, “I’ve been nominated five times. I think that sounds really cool,” keeping the joke light.

On GQ’s One More Question, Hawke explained why jury prizes outshine Oscar glory. Juliette Binoche collected acting prizes at Cannes, Berlin, and Venice, where no campaigning or publicity angle is needed, and the film does not have to be a hit. The Oscars carry far more big business. He joked that rivals must be jealous, yet he avoids feeding the hunger for praise because fanning it is dangerous.

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While awards remain on his wish list, Hawke says fame has a sweet spot, and he landed right on it.

During GQ’s One More Question, Zach Baron asked Ethan Hawke whether younger viewers still see him as a defining face of his era, and Hawke cheerfully admitted that many do not. Hawke is pleased with the level of fame he has, because it lets him work with talented people and still browse a grocery store in peace. Higher up the ladder, he said, life becomes really uncomfortable. Celebrity, in his view, is like a disease best handled in small doses.

At an airport, a traveler asked Hawke whether he was still acting and urged him to keep going. Some know him only from Training Day, Sinister, or Before Sunrise. Even Blue Moon, the film behind his latest nomination, reached many of them on Oscar night. Hawke likes that his career spans many genres, and he is glad he never pushed past this comfortable level. For a self-declared loser, Hawke sounds remarkably like a winner.

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What are your thoughts on Ethan Hawke calling himself a loser with five nominations? Let us know in the comments.