Best Actress
Nominees: Amy Adams for American Hustle, Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine, Sandra Bullock for Gravity, Judi Dench for Philomena, and Meryl Streep for August: Osage County
Notable precursor wins: Adams wins Golden Globe Award (Comedy), while Blanchett wins BAFTA, Broadcast Film Critics, Golden Globe (Drama), and Screen Actors Guild Awards, while McConaughey wins Broadcast Film Critics Association, Golden Globe (Drama), and Screen Actors Guild Awards
Current frontrunner: Cate Blanchett
Next in line: Amy Adams
Dark horse: Judi Dench
Continuing on with my “Get to know” series, we now turn our attention to the Best Actress race today. As you can no doubt see above, the ladies making up this category are Amy Adams for American Hustle, Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine, Sandra Bullock for Gravity, Judi Dench for Philomena, and Meryl Streep for August: Osage County. From the very beginning, it always appeared to be an Adams vs Blanchett race, and that’s what’s come to pass, though most thought it would be closer than it’s turned out to be. Right now, Blanchett looks like a lock to take home the Oscar.
From the start, Blanchett has basically swept the precursors, with Adams really only scoring when the Actress field is split up between Comedy and Drama. There was a brief moment before the awards started coming in where it seemed like someone could step up to beat here, with the buzz mainly surrounding Adams, but time after time when they’ve gone up against each other, Blanchett has come out on top. That leads me to believe that she’s more assured of a win than some claim.
Now, unless somehow Woody Allen’s recent bad publicity has an effect, Blanchett is going to win her second Oscar. If she winds up being beaten, the upset is going to come from Adams, though there’s a small chance that it could be the late charging Dench that wins, but realistically it’s going to be Blanchett. She’s a pretty safe bet here too.
Stay tuned for the rest of the acting categories this week, with Best Supporting Actor up next!
