2025’s Best Actor Nominees: Shocking Second Great Performances Revealed!

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2023’s Academy Awards nominations feature a robust lineup of five candidates vying for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Previous nominees Timothée Chalamet and Colman Domingo are up for another shot at claiming an Oscar, having come close within the last ten years. Adrien Brody is eyeing his second win, having taken home the prize for his work in The Pianist over two decades ago. Ralph Fiennes aims to secure his third Oscar victory, having been previously nominated and falling short in 1994 and 1997. Rounding out the list is Sebastian Stan, who makes his debut as an Oscar-nominated actor.

Among this year’s Best Actor nominees, one intriguing trait is that they appeared in a total of nine movies released in 2024, each garnering favorable responses from viewers, critics, or award ceremonies. The high number of films featuring the Best Actor nominees underscores their individual talents, even though only five of those performances earned a nomination.

Most of the Nominated Actors Had a Great Year

Most of the actors nominated for this year’s Best Actor category appeared in multiple films released in 2024, with Adrien Brody being the exception. He starred in a lengthy role for the film “The Brutalist“, a drama that spans over three hours and focuses on a post-war immigrant’s life.

In this awards season, Timothée Chalamet and Sebastian Stan are shining in two movies each. “A Complete Unknown,” where Chalamet plays singer Bob Dylan in a music biopic, and “Dune: Part Two,” where he’s Paul Atreides in a sci-fi saga, have garnered significant attention. Remarkably, both of these films have been nominated for the prestigious Best Picture award. Additionally, Timothée Chalamet has earned a Best Actor nomination for his performance in “A Complete Unknown.

Sebastian Stan played the billionaire-turned-President Donald Trump in the biopic “The Apprentice,” as well as fictional actor Edward Lemuel in “A Different Man.” Stan’s portrayal of Edward Lemuel earned him a Golden Globe for Best Actor, but his performance in “The Apprentice” was nominated for an Oscar instead.

In my perspective, both Colman Domingo and Ralph Fiennes have garnered an Oscar nomination in their repertoire, yet they’ve also been associated with projects that didn’t receive as much award recognition. For Ralph Fiennes, he portrayed Cardinal Thomas Lawrence in the film Conclave, but he also assumed the role of the mythical hero Odysseus in the movie titled The Return. On the other hand, Colman Domingo earned an Oscar nomination by playing the prisoner John Whitfield in the film Sing Sing. However, last year, he collaborated with the legendary director Ethan Coen in the production of Drive-Away Dolls.

Oscar Rules Are Limiting for Actors with Multiple Roles

In simpler terms, it means that according to the rules of the Academy Awards, an actor can’t get nominated twice in the same acting category, no matter how exceptional their performances might be. This rule is applied even if multiple performances by an actor this year were highly praised and could have potentially earned them multiple nominations. The Oscar system instead uses a preferential voting process to select only one of the nominated performances when two or more are worthy.

While the regulation permits five distinct actors to get nominated, it seems somewhat unjust towards actors who deliver Oscar-worthy performances multiple times within a year. Acting in a role worthy of an Oscar is a demanding task that typically involves extensive preparation and arduous shoots. Having two such outstanding performances in a single year is quite remarkable, and it’s unfortunate if these roles go unacknowledged at the Academy Awards.

It might be beneficial for the Academy to find a middle ground. Instead of restricting nominations to just one role per year, they could consider all acting performances by an actor in that specific year. After all, the award is for Best Actor, not Best Performance.

How Close Is the Race for Best Actor?

This year, the nominees for Best Actor are all exceptional contenders, making it a tight competition without an obvious front-runner. Adrien Brody is notably strong in the running, receiving praise from critics for his role in “The Brutalist” and having already received a Golden Globe award. However, potential challenges may arise due to the use of AI in his performance.

People’s opinions about the actors from the previous year can impact their voting choices. In other words, some people might choose a nominee based on the acting they admired during the year. For instance, a voter who found Sebastian Stan outstanding in “The Apprentice” and “A Different Man” might cast their vote for him because they believe his overall acting performance deserves an Oscar. Conversely, a voter may have disliked Timothée Chalamet’s performance in “Dune: Part Two,” which could influence them not to vote for his role in “A Complete Unknown.” It is also possible that some voters may make their decisions based on films that were not even nominated.

The numerous complexities surrounding this year’s race make it harder to foretell the outcome, given the diverse roles played by the nominated actors in various films last year. If Adrien Brody were to win, it would be a relatively straightforward victory; however, several variables could potentially diminish his chances. A win for another actor might suggest that voters aim to recognize performers who excel across multiple projects within a given year.

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2025-01-25 04:01