The Oscars Could Nominate Zero Newcomers for Actress, Actor and Director for the First Time Ever

Sensing a possible pattern within the doable nominations of three main Oscars classes — greatest director, actor and actress — we might see a first-time incidence for the Academy Awards on Tuesday. Nevertheless, in the event you learn the tea leaves put forth by the nominations for the DGA and SAG, there’s a powerful chance that every one three of these classes might not embody a first-time nominee — a primary in Oscar historical past.

For greatest actor, the SAG lineup acknowledged all former nominees and winners — Javier Bardem (“Being the Ricardos”), Benedict Cumberbatch (“The Energy of the Canine”), Andrew Garfield (“Tick, Tick … Increase!”), Will Smith (“King Richard”) and Denzel Washington (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”). Even those on the bubble are once-nominated or topped, together with Mahershala Ali (“Swan Music”), Bradley Cooper (“Nightmare Alley”) and Leonardo DiCaprio (“Don’t Look Up”). The closest first-timers within the working appear to be Golden Globe nominees Peter Dinklage (“Cyrano”) and Cooper Hoffman (“Licorice Pizza”), and lengthy photographs embody Clifton Collins Jr (“Jockey”) and Simon Rex (“Purple Rocket”). The final time that class was made up of all acquainted faces was 1980: winner Robert De Niro (“Raging Bull”), Robert Duvall (“The Nice Santini”), John Damage (“The Elephant Man”), Jack Lemmon (“Tribute”) and Peter O’Toole (“The Stunt Man”).

SAG shockingly left off Kristen Stewart (“Spencer”) in one of the best actress class, who can be a first-time Oscar nominee. As an alternative, they nominated Jessica Chastain (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”), Olivia Colman (“The Misplaced Daughter”), Girl Gaga (“Home of Gucci”), Jennifer Hudson (“Respect”) and Nicole Kidman (“Being the Ricardos”). Greatest actress lineups with all former nominees happen extra typically than the opposite two classes. For instance, the 2013 lineup had 4 winners, and one nonetheless unrewarded: Amy Adams (“American Hustle”), Cate Blanchett (“Blue Jasmine”), Sandra Bullock (“Gravity”), Judi Dench (“Philomena”) and Meryl Streep (“August: Osage County”). Earlier than that, you merely want to return to 1994 for an additional case: Jessica Lange (“Blue Sky”), Jodie Foster (“Nell”), Miranda Richardson (“Tom & Viv”), Winona Ryder (“Little Girls”) and Susan Sarandon (“The Consumer”).

This stat might bode nicely for potential BAFTA top-two vote-getters Alana Haim (“Licorice Pizza”), Emilia Jones (“CODA”), Renate Reinsve (“The Worst Particular person within the World”) and Tessa Thompson (“Passing”) or Golden Globe winner Rachel Zegler (“West Aspect Story”).

An all as soon as Oscar-nominated lineup for greatest director hasn’t occurred since 1950, with George Cukor (“Born Yesterday”), John Huston (“The Asphalt Jungle”), winner Joseph L. Mankiewicz (“All About Eve”), Carol Reed (“The Third Man”) and Billy Wilder (“Sundown Boulevard”). Nevertheless, judging by the DGA Awards lineup that included Paul Thomas Anderson (“Licorice Pizza”), Kenneth Branagh (“Belfast”), Jane Campion (“The Energy of the Canine”), Steven Spielberg (“West Aspect Story”) and Denis Villeneuve (“Dune”), all indicators are pointing to this 71-year-long streak being damaged (to be clear, that is referring to first-time nominees in one of the best director class). However, in fact, this might get damaged up with any of the seeming fringe contenders, notably Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (“Drive My Automobile”), Siân Heder (“CODA”), Reinaldo Marcus Inexperienced (“King Richard”) and Maggie Gyllenhaal (“The Misplaced Daughter”).

Earlier than 1950, there has solely been one different incidence of all once-nominated filmmakers: for the celebration of 1931/32, which solely nominated three administrators, they acknowledged King Vidor (“The Champ”), Josef von Sternberg (“Shanghai Specific”) and eventual winner Frank Borzage (“Unhealthy Woman”).

Whereas the statistic could appear mundane or unimportant, it might level to a doable unfavorable pattern in Hollywood as to who the actors and administrators department voters are deciding on as “one of the best of the yr.” Familiarity and established names provide you with a substantial edge.

The classes in query are 60% of what many take into account the “massive 5” – which additionally contains the classes for greatest image and both authentic or tailored screenplay. A complete of 43 movies have been nominated in all 5 of those classes in historical past, with simply three efficiently successful all of them – “It Occurred One Night time” (1934), “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975) and “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991). Even greatest authentic screenplay, if “King Richard” scribe Zach Baylin could make the minimize, has potential for all former nominees and winners. Fortunately the tailored race might have 4 newbies, doubtlessly even all ladies.

One of many nice goals of actors and filmmakers is the prospect to be acknowledged in your achievements in your craft. Sadly, there appears to a downward pattern for being acknowledged, as Barkhad Abdi (“Captain Phillips”), Adriana Barraza (“Babel”) or Lupita Nyong’o (“12 Years a Slave”) have. Even then, the alternatives that may come afterward don’t all the time align with others in yr’s previous. Nyong’o has made 10 movies since 2013, 4 of which solely used her voice, and only one, Jordan Peele’s “Us,” was a number one position.

This isn’t simply an Academy membership drawback. It’s about throwing accountability again to the studios to present extra unknowns and underappreciated actors and filmmakers an opportunity to hit a house run.

My closing predictions column is right here, with full rankings and commentary being up to date earlier than nominations.

2022 Academy Awards Predictions