Too many contenders. Too few spots. Picking just five performances for Best Actor this year is difficult, to say the least. Regardless of who the Academy picks for the final five, there will be several painful snubs that will send Film Twitter into a frenzy. At least it’ll all be over soon.
As is the case with Best Actress, there appears to be four spots already relatively spoken for. Riz Ahmed, frontrunner Chadwick Boseman, Anthony Hopkins, and Gary Oldman have all nabbed nominations at the Golden Globes, SAG Awards, and Critics Choice Awards. I was initially hesitant about Oldman’s chances, but he hasn’t missed a beat so far. Unless the Academy turns its back on Mank, he appears to be landing his third Oscar nod.
That only leaves us with the fifth spot to cover. For the longest time, I thought it was going Delroy Lindo’s way, particularly after his strong showing at the critics awards. But his staggering snubs at both the Globes and SAG is hard to overlook. Sure, he made it in at Critics Choice, but with eight nomination slots on offer, that’s hardly indicative of anything.
It’s now looking far more likely Steven Yeun will become the first Asian-American nominated for Best Actor, especially after he managed to score a somewhat-surprise nomination at SAG and Minari also landed an ensemble nod. The film continues to grow as a major contender and it would be rather cruel to see Minari score numerous nominations without one for its magnificent leading man.
BEST ACTOR PREDICTIONS:
1. Chadwick Boseman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix)
2. Riz Ahmed – Sound of Metal (Amazon Studios)
3. Anthony Hopkins – The Father (Sony Pictures Classics)
4. Gary Oldman – Mank (Netflix)
5. Steven Yeun – Minari (A24)
MAJOR CONTENDERS:
Ben Affleck – The Way Back (Warner Bros.)
Kingsley Ben-Adir – One Night in Miami (Amazon Studios)
Tom Hanks – News of the World (Universal Pictures)
Delroy Lindo – Da 5 Bloods (Netflix)
Mads Mikkelsen – Another Round (Samuel Goldwyn Mayer)