2019 Oscar Predictions: BEST ACTRESS (May) – Ro mah ro-mah-mah Gaga oh-la-la!
Yep, Lady Gaga has entered the Best Actress race.
Like her director and co-star, Lady Gaga is enjoying great word of mouth for her lead feature film debut in A Star Is Born. The pop superstar has enjoyed success in the music industry as one of the most popular artists of the 21st century and even her first foray into television acting netted her a Golden Globe for Best Actress (for American Horror Story: Hotel). Some may gawk at that win as the HFPA being populist and loving to award singer-turned-actors (like Madonna in Evita beating Frances McDormand in Fargo) but this feels different; like a true performance from a real performer (all vocals in the film were recorded live). Gaga enters the chart this month at #7 but could find herself top 5 very soon.
Elsewhere it’s much of the same, with the top 6 of Oscar winner and three-time nominee Viola Davis (Widows), three-time nominee Saoirse Ronan (Mary Queen of Scots), Oscar nominee Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?), Oscar winner and four-time nominee Nicole Kidman (Destroyer) and SIX-time nominee Glenn Close (The Wife).
Renée Zellweger drops a bit for Judy (that could change if a strong indie studio picks it up) but there would be some fun meta irony if Zellweger, playing Judy Garland, misses out in favor of Lady Gaga, playing one of Judy Garland’s most revered roles.
I still have bumped Toni Collette up to the Next Up section for her June horror film Hereditary and I hope I’m not sleeping on her there. I know her performance is being given ‘best of career’ notices and that A24 is going to push hard for her but I’m still a bit hesitant to pop her in the top 10.
Here are my predictions for Best Actress as of May 23, 2018.
Green – moves up
Red – moves down
Blue – chart debut
| 1. Viola Davis – Widows |
| 2. Saoirse Ronan – Mary Queen of Scots |
| 3. Melissa McCarthy – Can You Ever Forgive Me? |
| 4. Nicole Kidman – Destroyer |
| 5. Glenn Close – The Wife |
| 6. Felicity Jones – On the Basis of Sex |
| 7. Lady Gaga – A Star Is Born |
| 8. Renée Zellweger – Judy |
| 9. Cate Blanchett – Where’d You Go, Bernadette |
|
10. Kiki Layne – If Beale Street Could Talk
|
| NEXT UP |
| Toni Collette – Hereditary |
| Poorna Jagannathan – Untitled Pippa Bianco aka Share |
| Gugu Mbatha-Raw – Fast Color |
| Julianne Moore – Gloria Bell |
| Rachel Weisz – The Favourite |
| OTHER CONTENDERS |
| Amy Adams – Backseat |
| Gemma Atherton – Vita and Virginia |
| Emily Blunt – Mary Poppins Returns |
| Jessica Chastain – Woman Walks Ahead |
| Kiersey Clemons – Hearts Beat Loud |
| Olivia Colman – The Favourite |
| Penélope Cruz – Everybody Knows |
| Elizabeth Debicki – Vita and Virginia |
| Judi Dench – Red Joan |
| Elsie Fisher – Eighth Grade |
| Salma Hayek – The Hummingbird Project |
| Taraji P. Henson – The Best of Enemies |
| Isabelle Huppert – The Widow |
| Juli Jakab – Sunset |
| Dakota Johnson – Suspiria |
| Keira Knightley – The Aftermath |
| Keira Knightley – Colette |
| Kelly Macdonald – Puzzle |
| Danielle Macdonald – Dumplin’ |
| Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie – Leave No Trace |
| Carey Mulligan – Wildlife |
| Michelle Pfeiffer – Where Is Kyra? |
| Rosamund Pike – A Private War |
| Florence Pugh – Fighting with My Family |
| Gina Rodríguez – Miss Bala |
| Kristen Stewart – JT Leroy |
| Emma Stone – The Favourite |
| Hilary Swank – What They Had |
| Charlize Theron – Tully |
| Rachel Weisz – Disobedience |
| Constance Wu – Crazy Rich Asians |
2019 Oscar Predictions: BEST PICTURE (May)
2019 Oscar Predictions: BEST DIRECTOR (May)
2019 Oscar Predictions: BEST ACTOR (May)
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
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