One month before the December awards voting, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association will launch a group email thread where members can claim their favorite films and standouts. The idea is to help everyone fill in the gaps in our viewing when we’re wading through screeners and links in a desperate attempt to see everything before voting.
Sometimes the discussion moves to other areas, often focusing on whether certain performances should be considered leading or supporting. Who is the real star of Emilia Perez? Carla Sofia Gascon, who plays Emilia Perez, the character who drives the story, or Zoe Saldaña, who gets the most screen time as the lawyer who helps her? Or are you a co-leader? Netflix doesn’t think so, and is running a campaign in favor of Mr. Gascón and Mr. Saldaña. (Please note that these decisions are made by the actors and their teams.)
Some would argue that Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande should also be considered as co-stars in Wicked. But the musical is actually Elphaba’s story, with Grande’s Glinda accompanying her as her biggest frenemy. So it doesn’t seem like a terrible thing for Universal to push Erivo as lead and Grande as support.
and The Odd Couple Road, in which Kieran Culkin and his two cousins, played by Culkin, and the film’s writer/director Jesse Eisenberg travel to Poland to visit his late grandmother’s childhood home. What about going to support the movie A Real Pain? Culkin’s screen time is about the same as Eisenberg’s, but the story is told from Eisenberg’s character’s perspective. (The same goes for Saldaña, which is why her placement may raise some eyebrows.)
In the LA Film Critics Poll, Culkin came very close to making it to the final round, working first on his lead performance. Then came the supporters, and it was immediately clear that even those who thought Culkin was the lead were not deterred from voting for him, and Culkin received the award along with Yura Borisov for “Anora.” Then a friend of mine in public relations sent me the following email: “That’s where Culkin is. If you give him a lead, you’re saying he’s going to try to pull the fast ball by going to support.”
It’s up to Oscar voters to decide where he belongs, and he doesn’t have to follow the placement suggested by the studio. And in rare cases, this is not the case. The Weinstein Co. cast Kate Winslet as a supporting actress in “The Reader” at the 2009 Oscars, hoping to avoid competition with the lead actress who co-starred with Leonardo DiCaprio in “Revolutionary Road.” The Golden Globes and SAG Awards nominated Winslet for Best Supporting Role, but members of the Motion Picture Academy chose her for the lead role. And Winslet ended up winning an Oscar. (She did not thank Weinstein in her acceptance speech.)
It’s hard to imagine voters will make a category shift like Culkin, Saldaña or Grande this year. Who might join the category that supports them? Let’s take a look.
supporting actor
Culkin has been dominating the early season awards thanks to all of his screen time and his stellar job playing a charming man whose passionate emotions mask the turmoil deep within. Borisov could be among the contenders for his soulful performance as a brooding Russian henchman in Anora, but for a category that tends to reward the “best” rather than the best, It’s natural to wonder if his work is too subtle.
If you’re looking for “almost,” Denzel Washington has you covered, and there’s also some “Gladiator II.” He’s clearly having the time of his life, and his exuberance (and sharks!) made this movie well worth your time. Another actor clearly having fun is Edward Norton, who played folk singer Pete Seeger in A Complete Unknown. Norton leans toward Seeger’s folksy side, but also incorporates a manipulative element into his portrayal of Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) as he tries to keep him in the activist movement. He’s as good as Chalamet in every way.
Of all the supporting actor nominees, no one has a better story to tell than Clarence Macklin, who went from “Sing Sing” to “Sing Sing.” He does an excellent job playing an inmate who is initially reluctant to participate in the prison’s theater program. Macklin should have won more awards, but the film hasn’t found enough of an audience.
That’s five, but there are others looking for them. Jeremy Strong plays Roy Cohn on The Apprentice and is on top form (as always). Stanley Tucci brings some delicious snark to “Conclave.” And there are Peter Sarsgaard and John Magaro, two members of the excellent “Fifth of September” ensemble, but like “His Three Daughters,” they’re all just too good. is hindered by. How do you single out someone?
support actress
This Oscar race will be a battle between Saldaña and Grande, thanks to running time, quality of production, and the fact that this year has been an unusually thin year for female support. If I were to vote, I’d check off Natasha Lyonne, Carrie Coon, and Elizabeth Olsen from “His Three Daughters,” along with Grande and Saldaña, and call it a day. That said, I’m tempted to find room for Margaret Qualley, who was great as Demi Moore’s younger half in The Substance.
Danielle Deadwyler has received much deserved praise for her performance in The Piano Lesson as a woman who decides to deal with her family’s past in her own way rather than following her brother’s wishes. There is. Deadwyler is making a clear case for his first nomination after being overlooked for “Till” two years ago. Felicity Jones is also aiming for a breakthrough as an Oscar nominee, and her role as a strong-willed wife in the second half of “The Brutalist” has become a hot topic.
Next, Aounjanou Ellis Taylor and Isabella Rossellini make a huge impression in their short time together. Rossellini has never been nominated and has participated in “conclaves” for less than eight minutes. But she does have one great scene (that bow!) that often gets applause at screenings. Voters remember that. Elise Taylor, meanwhile, brings palpable heartache to “The Nickel Boys” as a devoted grandmother sidelined by inequality and greed.
Finally, Selena Gomez plays the wife of a drug boss in “Emilia Perez,” delivering an explosive song that adds some interesting ambiguity to her character. Gomez is chastised for her Spanish in the film, but it feels like a minor point in a film where absurdity feels like the rule.
