While it might seem as if we’re only just catching our breath after the most recent set of awards, we’re already heading into another six months of tireless campaigning, tearful speeches and Weinstein grandstanding.
The recent festival lineups have given us a clearer idea of what the major contenders will be and what actors will be front and centre throughout the period. But, for some, merely starring in one awards-friendly film isn’t quite enough. More than ever, this year sees a pack of the frontrunners all pulling double, sometimes triple, sometimes quadruple duty, in their tireless pursuit of the main prize.
Here are the actors who will need a lot of foot-rubs come March:
Cate Blanchett
On the campaign trail for ... Carol and Truth
Ever since her 1999 nomination for Elizabeth, the Academy has had an embarrassingly obvious crush on Cate Blanchett who, with four nominations and two wins, has become the most nominated Australian actor ever. After winning for Blue Jasmine, she took a year out of awards circulation, but she’s now back with two major contenders. The first of which, the 1950s-set romance Carol, is the closest we have to a lock at this early stage, with Blanchett’s lead role as a woman risking it all to pursue a relationship with another woman still floating on Cannes buzz. But the as-yet-unseen political drama Truth, where she plays a real-life news producer opposite Robert Redford, could see her straddle both female categories, something she also did back in 2007 with Elizabeth and I’m Not There.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
On the campaign trail for ... The Walk and Snowden
He might have had supporting roles in Oscar-winning films Lincoln and Inception, but a Joseph Gordon-Levitt performance has never once threatened to break into the acting races. This year, though, he’s sick of playing fifth fiddle and has two big films from Oscar-winning directors that could well become part of the conversation. First it’s The Walk from Robert Zemeckis, which is, essentially, a dramatic retelling of Man on Wire and sees Gordon-Levitt test out iz French aksunt as daring high-wire artist Philippe Petit. The more likely of the pair is political thriller Snowden which, dependent on whether Oliver Stone can pull it out of the bag after a rough patch, could be a a career peak for Gordon-Levitt as the infamous whistleblower.
Meryl Streep
On the campaign trail for ... Ricki and the Flash and Suffragette
While predicting that Meryl Streep might be up for an Oscar is a bit like suggesting that Hollywood will continue to make superhero films, she’s looking like a potential nominee in two different categories this time around. First up, heading straight to cinemas and avoiding any festival release, is the potentially generic Ricki and the Flash, where she plays a rock star heading home to make peace with her estranged family. It could go either way, whereas her small role in period drama Suffragette, as Emmeline Pankhurst, sounds like a lock for supporting actress, even if it is just one stirring speech.
Michael Fassbender
On the campaign trail for ... Macbeth, Steve Jobs and (maybe) The Light Between Oceans
After his best supporting actor Oscar for 12 Years a Slave was snatched away from him by Jared Leto’s more visually transformative turn in Dallas Buyers Club, Michael Fassbender lined up a trio of awards-friendly films to ensure future victory. Next February could see him cashing in, with awards-friendly release dates for both Macbeth, which has already blessed him with strong Cannes notices, and Danny Boyle’s Aaron Sorkin-scripted Steve Jobs, which should be a shoo-in for some Oscar attention. If all else fails, Derek Cianfrance’s tragic drama The Light Between Oceans could grab a last minute end-of-year release and, given its post-first world war setting and supporting cast (Rachel Weisz and – scroll to the bottom – Alicia Vikander), it’s tailor-made awards fodder.
Tom Hanks
On the campaign trail for ... Bridge of Spies and A Hologram for the King
In an attempt to add some variety to his nice guy repertoire, Tom Hanks has had mixed fortunes in recent years. Cloud Atlas was a misstep, but 2013’s Captain Phillips, or one integral scene in Captain Phillips, might well be his finest work. He has two films set for the last quarter, both of which allow him to stretch himself a bit further than his last film, the insipidly saccharine Saving Mr Banks. He’s reuniting with Steven Spielberg for Bridge of Spies, a Cold War thriller that boasts a Coen brothers-penned script and he’s heading up the intriguing drama A Hologram for a King, based on the novel by Dave Eggers.
Bradley Cooper
On the campaign trail for ... Joy and Burnt
When Bradley Cooper first came to attention for playing smarmy rogues in Wedding Crashers and The Hangover, a future as an Academy darling didn’t seem likely. But he lost the hair gel and attached himself to directors such as David O Russell and Clint Eastwood and managed consecutive acting nominations for the last three years running. He’s aiming to make it four with two projects: Miracle Mop comedy Joy reunites him with O Russell and Jennifer Lawrence, where he plays an executive at a home shopping network, and Burnt has him in the lead as a chef trying to regain his reputation, alongside a starry cast that includes Sienna Miller and Emma Thompson.
Tom Hardy
On the campaign trail for ... Legend and The Revenant
While his role in the daring one-man drama Locke drew him some critics’ awards during last year’s cycle, it was a bit too muted to get him a slot at the Oscars. But this year, he has two much more awards-friendly titles doing the rounds. In Legend, he stars as both Kray twins in the story of their violent rise to the top of the criminal underworld in 1960s London, and in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant, he’s got a supporting turn as one of the men who leaves Leonardo DiCaprio’s vengeful fur trapper for dead. Given Hardy’s Mad Max press tour, we’ll look forward to seeing how he conforms to the ass-kissing required to get in the race.
Alicia Vikander
On the campaign trail for ... The Danish Girl, Burnt, (maybe) The Light Between Oceans and (maybe) Tulip Fever
Quite possibly the busiest actor of the year (aside from the films mentioned, she’s also been in Ex Machina, Testament of Youth, Son of a Gun, Seventh Son and this month’s The Man From UNCLE), Swedish Alicia Vikander has barely even started. She’s got key roles in the previously mentioned Fassbender drama The Light Between Oceans and Cooper food flick Burnt and, dependent on as yet unconfirmed release date, she could be in contention for the long-awaited period romance Tulip Fever, alongside Jack O’Connell, Judi Dench and Christoph Waltz. But the most likely option seems to be The Danish Girl, from The King’s Speech’s Tom Hooper, where she’ll play the wife of Eddie Redmayne’s character, who was one of the first recipients of sexual reassignment surgery.
