Luke
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CibbuanoThe Oscar - Actress Stats
February 6th 2007 11:01
Following on from last week's actors stats, here are the stats for the various nominated actresses for this year's Academy Awards. As in the previous article, I'm keen to point out that I'm mainly just talking about each actress's previous nominations and what their chances are according to past Oscar trends.
BEST ACTRESS
Perhaps more exciting and clearly cut than the Best Actor nominations this season are the nominations for Best Actress. The Best Actress nominations are typically cast from a smaller pool of actresses... the Academy Awards love to re-nominate past winners, and the film industry loves to give all it's plum roles to the mighty few who have such a prestige next to their name. As women roles are traditionally far and few between, the good roles that do become available often go to the same people - the ones who have already made a name for themselves, and hence they're also the ones who are able to get re-nominated much easier. It's a self-feeding cycle that the Academy loves to perpetuate, though - to be fair - in recent years they have gone out of their way to put in a few token nominations to help widen the pool. Recent examples include the nominating of 'new' talent (a respectable but not exactly stellar performance by a well-known young actress might get nominated - ala Keira Knightley in 'Pride and Prejudice') or nominating a non-English speaking performance from a foreign film (such as the nomination of the lead actress [whose name escapes me for the moment] from 'Maria Full of Grace'). This year's surprise nomination along these lines was Penelope Cruz from 'Volver', her first nomination. And let's face it, as much as she might deserve to win, she doesn't really stand a chance against the other towering nominees.
The hot favourite this season is Helen Mirren for her popular performance as Queen Elizabeth II in 'The Queen'. Mirren has already taken out both the Golden Globe and Screen Actor's Guild awards - both of which featured almost the exact same nominees as the Oscars this year, so it's looking to be pointing in her favour. This is Mirren's third nomination, she was previously nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for both 'The Madness of King George' (1995) and 'Gosford Park' (2001). She's been a highly respected actress but largely unrecognised by Hollywood through the last three decades, and I think the winning of the Oscar would be the culmination of both a long career of distinguished roles and a genuinely good performance in 'The Queen'.
This year also features two further nominations for two Oscar-winning giants of film... Meryl Streep (the most nominated actor in Oscar history) and Judi Dench (who has done pretty well for an old bird). Streep has been awarded the statue twice now, a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for 'Kramer Vs. Kramer' (1979) and a Best Actress Oscar for 'Sophie's Choice' (1982), but I don't think she will get a third until she is a little bit older (ala Katherine Hepburn) and/or doesn't have competition as strong as Mirren's performance this year. Streep's previous nominations are for Best Supporting Actress in 'The Deer Hunter' (1978), Best Actress in 'The French Lieutenant's Woman' (1981), 'Silkwood' (1983), 'Out of Africa' (1985), 'Ironweed' (1987), 'Evil Angels' (1988), 'Postcards from the Edge' (1990), 'The Bridges of Madison County' (1995), 'One True Thing' (1998) and 'Music of the Heart' (1999), and another Best Supporting Actress nomination for 'Adaptation' (2002). Meanwhile, Dench has managed to get nominated six times in the last ten years, a pretty astonishing feat for someone who only got their first nomination at the age of 63. She previously won the Best Supporting Actress award for 'Shakespeare in Love' (1998), and has been nominated for Best Actress in 'Mrs. Brown' (1997), Best Supporting Actress in 'Chocolat' (2000), and Best Actress for 'Iris' (2001) and 'Mrs. Henderson Presents' (2005). I think it's unlikely Dench will win another Oscar though, especially not this year.
The other nominee is Kate Winslet. This year is her fifth nomination, and she's been a bit of a favourite of the Academy's over the last decade too. Her credibility as a serious actress has always been rather high, and she has plenty of years left in her as far as getting nominated goes, so I don't think she will win until maybe her next nomination. Her previous nominations were for Best Actress in 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' (2004), Best Supporting Actress in 'Iris' (2001), Best Actress in 'Titanic' (1997) and Best Supporting Actress in 'Sense and Sensibility' (1995).
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
As usual, this category is full of wild cards. Of the five nominees this season only one - Cate Blanchett - has been nominated before. Blanchett was previously nominated for Best Actress in 1998 for 'Elizabeth', and won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for 'The Aviator' in 2004. I don't think Blanchett will win this year, she has at least another decade or so of solid acting left in her and (like Winslet) her credibility is pretty high. Blanchett will probably eventually win a Best Actress Oscar if she can get herself nominated a few more times.
The other nominees include Adriana Barraza and Rinko Kikuchi, both nominated for 'Babel' and both relatively new to english-speaking audiences. Like Penelope Cruz, it's unlikely they will win, their nominations are largely of a token nature to show how progressive the Academy can be. Kikuchi might just deserve to win, but the way the Screen Actors Guild and Golden Globe awards have gone point to another nominee as being the most likely winner...
Jennifer Hudson has taken out these two aforementioned awards for her supporting turn in 'Dreamgirls', and it's highly likely the Academy will follow suit. Her closest competition is probably Blanchett.
The nominee with the slightest chance of winning is 10-year old Abigail Breslin. The Academy occasionally allows a young actress or actor to get nominated, but they almost never win. Breslin's performance is exceptional though, so like I said - a slight chance.
And that's that for the Actresses this year. Stay tuned for stats on the Directors and Best Film nominees some time in the near future.
Streep - has now been nominated a staggering 14 times
BEST ACTRESS
Perhaps more exciting and clearly cut than the Best Actor nominations this season are the nominations for Best Actress. The Best Actress nominations are typically cast from a smaller pool of actresses... the Academy Awards love to re-nominate past winners, and the film industry loves to give all it's plum roles to the mighty few who have such a prestige next to their name. As women roles are traditionally far and few between, the good roles that do become available often go to the same people - the ones who have already made a name for themselves, and hence they're also the ones who are able to get re-nominated much easier. It's a self-feeding cycle that the Academy loves to perpetuate, though - to be fair - in recent years they have gone out of their way to put in a few token nominations to help widen the pool. Recent examples include the nominating of 'new' talent (a respectable but not exactly stellar performance by a well-known young actress might get nominated - ala Keira Knightley in 'Pride and Prejudice') or nominating a non-English speaking performance from a foreign film (such as the nomination of the lead actress [whose name escapes me for the moment] from 'Maria Full of Grace'). This year's surprise nomination along these lines was Penelope Cruz from 'Volver', her first nomination. And let's face it, as much as she might deserve to win, she doesn't really stand a chance against the other towering nominees.
The hot favourite this season is Helen Mirren for her popular performance as Queen Elizabeth II in 'The Queen'. Mirren has already taken out both the Golden Globe and Screen Actor's Guild awards - both of which featured almost the exact same nominees as the Oscars this year, so it's looking to be pointing in her favour. This is Mirren's third nomination, she was previously nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for both 'The Madness of King George' (1995) and 'Gosford Park' (2001). She's been a highly respected actress but largely unrecognised by Hollywood through the last three decades, and I think the winning of the Oscar would be the culmination of both a long career of distinguished roles and a genuinely good performance in 'The Queen'.
This year also features two further nominations for two Oscar-winning giants of film... Meryl Streep (the most nominated actor in Oscar history) and Judi Dench (who has done pretty well for an old bird). Streep has been awarded the statue twice now, a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for 'Kramer Vs. Kramer' (1979) and a Best Actress Oscar for 'Sophie's Choice' (1982), but I don't think she will get a third until she is a little bit older (ala Katherine Hepburn) and/or doesn't have competition as strong as Mirren's performance this year. Streep's previous nominations are for Best Supporting Actress in 'The Deer Hunter' (1978), Best Actress in 'The French Lieutenant's Woman' (1981), 'Silkwood' (1983), 'Out of Africa' (1985), 'Ironweed' (1987), 'Evil Angels' (1988), 'Postcards from the Edge' (1990), 'The Bridges of Madison County' (1995), 'One True Thing' (1998) and 'Music of the Heart' (1999), and another Best Supporting Actress nomination for 'Adaptation' (2002). Meanwhile, Dench has managed to get nominated six times in the last ten years, a pretty astonishing feat for someone who only got their first nomination at the age of 63. She previously won the Best Supporting Actress award for 'Shakespeare in Love' (1998), and has been nominated for Best Actress in 'Mrs. Brown' (1997), Best Supporting Actress in 'Chocolat' (2000), and Best Actress for 'Iris' (2001) and 'Mrs. Henderson Presents' (2005). I think it's unlikely Dench will win another Oscar though, especially not this year.
The other nominee is Kate Winslet. This year is her fifth nomination, and she's been a bit of a favourite of the Academy's over the last decade too. Her credibility as a serious actress has always been rather high, and she has plenty of years left in her as far as getting nominated goes, so I don't think she will win until maybe her next nomination. Her previous nominations were for Best Actress in 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' (2004), Best Supporting Actress in 'Iris' (2001), Best Actress in 'Titanic' (1997) and Best Supporting Actress in 'Sense and Sensibility' (1995).
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
As usual, this category is full of wild cards. Of the five nominees this season only one - Cate Blanchett - has been nominated before. Blanchett was previously nominated for Best Actress in 1998 for 'Elizabeth', and won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for 'The Aviator' in 2004. I don't think Blanchett will win this year, she has at least another decade or so of solid acting left in her and (like Winslet) her credibility is pretty high. Blanchett will probably eventually win a Best Actress Oscar if she can get herself nominated a few more times.
The other nominees include Adriana Barraza and Rinko Kikuchi, both nominated for 'Babel' and both relatively new to english-speaking audiences. Like Penelope Cruz, it's unlikely they will win, their nominations are largely of a token nature to show how progressive the Academy can be. Kikuchi might just deserve to win, but the way the Screen Actors Guild and Golden Globe awards have gone point to another nominee as being the most likely winner...
Jennifer Hudson has taken out these two aforementioned awards for her supporting turn in 'Dreamgirls', and it's highly likely the Academy will follow suit. Her closest competition is probably Blanchett.
The nominee with the slightest chance of winning is 10-year old Abigail Breslin. The Academy occasionally allows a young actress or actor to get nominated, but they almost never win. Breslin's performance is exceptional though, so like I said - a slight chance.
And that's that for the Actresses this year. Stay tuned for stats on the Directors and Best Film nominees some time in the near future.
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Comment by Tel
Cheers!
Tel
Comment by Luke
Old Movies
Cane Toad Warrior
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I hope that Abigail Breslin from LMS wins supporting actress, one of the few child performances worthy of praise.
Comment by Luke
Old Movies
Cane Toad Warrior