The Oscars are so wild this year that people reportedly complained about a dog being so lovable he skewed the race

• "Anatomy of a Fall" star Messi the dog reportedly won't attend the Oscars on Sunday.
• Companies reportedly complained that his presence at a nominees luncheon gave "Anatomy of a Fall" an advantage.

Justice for Messi!

The border collie star of Justine Triet's "Anatomy of a Fall" will not attend the Oscars on Sunday, according to The Hollywood Reporter. And apparently, after an attention-dominating appearance at the annual pre-Oscars nominees' luncheon in February, a few companies with nominees of their own weren't too happy about his presence there.

Citing an anonymous source, The Hollywood Reporter says that some of those companies complained to the Academy that Messi's appearance provided "Anatomy of a Fall" with an advantage in the Oscars race, given that the luncheon took place during the voting period. The Hollywood Reporter did not name any of the companies in question.

Messi himself isn't a nominee at the awards (though he has already won the award for best supporting good boy in our hearts). "Anatomy of a Fall" has multiple nominations, including Sandra Hüller for actress in a leading role, Justine Triet for directing, and of course, the coveted best picture award. The French film follows Hüller's character, Sandra Voyter, as she attempts to prove that she didn't kill her husband after he died from falling out a window. Messi plays Snoop, Voyter's son's guide dog.

At the nominees' luncheon, stars from Bradley Cooper, to Ryan Gosling, to Billie Eilish, paid their respects to Messi, The Independent reported. The New York Times awards season columnist Kyle Buchanan, posting on X from the event, shared footage of himself — and other stars — playing with Messi at the event.

"The ANATOMY OF A FALL dog is this year's Tom Cruise," Buchanan wrote on X. "Everyone at the nominees' luncheon wants to meet him."

The ANATOMY OF A FALL dog and I are playing at the Oscar nominees luncheon pic.twitter.com/DA282BQ5uI

— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) February 12, 2024

Messi, however, is a Paris-based pooch — and one cross-ocean plane ride may have been exciting enough. His trainer and owner, Laura Martin, told The Hollywood Reporter that the Messi hype started all the way back at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023, where "Anatomy of a Fall" premiered and won the Palme d'Or. There, Messi was awarded the equally prestigious (though unofficial) Palm Dog for his performance.

"There were a few interviews in France, but what we've been experiencing here in America — with the attention to this dog and his acting — it's beyond anything we anticipated," Martin told The Hollywood Reporter. "It's probably the maximum that you can accomplish in this field."

The Academy did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent to its publicity line.