Why everyone’s debating Riseborough’s Oscar nod

nothing – no Tom Cruisenor a thug Austin ButlerIt is getting late Elvis Presley Inflection – has caused quite a stir for this year’s Oscars in the form of a best-actress nomination for British actress Andrea Risenborough.

Riseborough was nominated for her performance as an alcoholic Texas single mother in the unlikely-viewed indie drama to leslie, a pic that shocked oscar Pandit and has since brought investigations from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. For the film grossing $27,322 at the box office, to leslie And Riseborough has made a lot of noise.

At issue is the way Riseborough’s candidacy was promoted. Although many award contenders are supported by orchestrated campaigns paid for by their film’s studio, Riseborough rose in the Oscar ranks thanks largely to grassroots efforts. to leslie Director Michael Morris and his wife, actor Mary McCormack. He urged stars to watch the film and host screenings or praise Riseborough’s performance on social media. And many of them did.

So what’s the big deal? Cronyism isn’t exactly news in Hollywood; At least that’s the way it works. But Riseborough’s nomination — and its strong response — has disrupted this year’s Oscar season, with potential fallout from the Academy Awards in March and the bids of all future Oscar hopefuls.

Who is there? Andrea Riseborough,

For nearly 15 years, Riseborough, 41, has been a regular presence in film, television and London theatre, but her chameleon demeanor has sometimes been difficult to register. She appeared in Mike Leigh Carefree in 2008. She made an impression as Reagan’s girlfriend birdman, She played Stalin’s daughter death of stalin, in mandy, Alongside Nicolas Cage, she played his character’s kidnapped girlfriend. In 2022 Riseborough had several other notable credits including David O Russell amsterdam and as Mrs. Wormwood Matilda The Musical. She’s been doing acclaimed work in adventure independent film long enough that an Oscar vote for her may be partly for her unremarkable body of work.

How unexpected was Riseborough’s nomination?

Almost no one expected Riseborough’s late-breaking campaign to actually get him the nomination. It wasn’t completely out of left field, though. Riseborough’s performance in to leslie was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. But she didn’t expect to be in the mix in what is generally considered the toughest category to break into this year. Riseborough was nominated alongside Cate Blachette, Michelle Williams, Ana de Armas and Michelle Yeoh.

“I’m amazed,” Riseborough said. deadline immediately after the announcement of nominations. “It was very hard to believe that this could ever happen because we weren’t really in the running for anything else. Even though we had a lot of support, the idea seemed really far-fetched.”

Two highly regarded performances were omitted: Viola Davis in lady king and in Danielle Deadweiler until. That the category’s most glaring abusers were both black women has been a point of discussion. until Director Chinoni Chukwu suggested in a post on Instagram that the system had failed. “We live in a world and work in industries that are so aggressively committed to perpetuating whiteness and perpetuating an unrelenting misogyny towards black women.”

What makes Riseborough’s campaign different?

Nearly every acting nominee participates in some sort of Oscar campaign to highlight their performance and help inspire voters to see their film. It is a game that is played. Playwright and screenwriter Jeremy O’Harris wrote on Twitter: “Don’t people realize that what the actresses did for Andrea Riseborough was privately watch every movie/performance (with ) happens to.”

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(AP)

There are rules that limit the types of events that can be held and even the number of times a person can email promotions to members of the Academy during the voting period. Most of the campaigns have experienced strategists and a lot of money behind them. The pushers to Riseborough, however, managed to draw attention to him without such support. Instead, he relied on A-listers to spread the word.

Kate Winslet, Charlize Theron, Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Amy Adams, and Courteney Cox all hosted screenings of the film. “You should win everything,” Winslet told him in a virtual Q&A. Other stars such as Edward Norton, Susan Sarandon, Mira Sorvino and Rosie O’Donnell praised her on social media. Those supporting Riseborough saw in the campaign — no billboards at sunset, no “for your consideration” ads, just a deep Rolodex — a great way to circumvent traditional Oscar rituals. In a since-deleted post, actress Christina Ricci wrote of the backlash to Riseborough’s nomination: “So it’s only movies and actors who can afford campaigns that deserve recognition? I feel elitist and exclusive and frankly Feels very backward.

Did this break any rules?

There is no public evidence that Riseborough or anyone on his behalf has explicitly broken Academy rules. The screenings and endorsements that inspired Riseborough are common. Some have speculated that Riseborough may have been boosted by the strong passion of his supporters, who may have made him their top candidate.

But if the Academy finds that someone has violated the rules of contacting members of the Academy “directly and in a manner outside the scope of these rules”, the Academy’s Board of Governors may “take any corrective action up to and including disqualification”. may assess any penalty,” according to the Academy bylaws. “Further, any Academy member who authorizes, executes or otherwise enables a campaign activity that is determined by the Board of Governors to subvert the letter or spirit of these Rules shall be subject to suspension of membership or expulsion from the Academy.” may be subject to.”

Oscar nominations are rarely rescinded but it has happened. In 2014, composer Bruce Broughton, nominated for Best Original Song, was disqualified after it was revealed that he emailed members of the Music Branch to bring attention to his rendition of the song. At the time, Broughton, a former governor of the Academy, was a member of the music branch’s executive committee.

How has the Academy responded?

The academy has not commented on Riseborough’s nomination. But on Friday, he announced that he would review campaign procedures surrounding this year’s nominees “to ensure that no guidelines were violated, and to inform us that social media and digital A new era of communication may or may not require a change in guidelines.”

“We are confident in the integrity of our nominations and voting processes and support real grassroots campaigns for excellence,” the Academy said.