Best Supporting Actor: Ranking Every Oscar Nominee
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Now that the nominations for the 94th Academy Awards have been announced, it’s time to do my annual tradition of ranking each and every nominee in each category (because I love putting too many hours into this sort of thing); I’ll also be picking one snub for each category, and predicting what I think will win and stating what I wish would actually win. This is my Academy Awards Project, and you will find a new entry for it each weekday until we are all caught up; there will be some Oscar bonuses following afterward (however, with the amount of time in between the nominations and the actual ceremony March 27th, there may be a big enough break in between this project and the actual awards, so who knows how much filler I can even come up with). Everything else coming from me will be put on hold, including Perfect Reception and On-This-Day Thursday (the latter was put on hold for a while anyway but will certainly return in the near future).
For this first category (whether you call it “Best Supporting Actor” or “Best Actor in a Supporting Role”), I’m looking at the performances that best elevated the films (and/or scenes) that housed these characters. Did any of the following gentlemen steal the show? Did they serve the leads as best as they could? Were they truly strong enough to be considered for this category? I don’t think any of the nominees this year are bad, but I for sure have some more preferred roles over others. Here are your nominees.
Biggest Snub: The Tragedy of Macbeth-Corey Hawkins
Because so many names could go here (Jamie Dornan for Belfast, Richard Jenkins for The Humans, virtually anyone but Jared Leto for House of Gucci), I want to go with a bit of a lesser spoken performance during this awards season. For me Corey Hawkins was dynamite in The Tragedy of Macbeth and was commanding the screen as strongly as both Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand at times. As Macduff, finding someone this compelling was important, and Hawkins, to me, has never been better.
5. Being the Ricardos-J.K. Simmons
Okay… some positives… J.K. Simmons was for sure a highlight of Being the Ricardos, and I did find his William Frawley performance to be highly entertaining. Finally, J.K. Simmons has more than one Oscar nomination. That counts, right? However, compared to some of these other nominees, this pop-in, pop-out character who occasionally steals scenes is nice but just not strong enough to compete here (it has nothing to do with Simmons who played the part insanely well, but the limitations of how the character was written). Simmons is fun here, but I feel like this could have also been a slot to a more memorable performance.
4. The Power of the Dog-Jesse Plemons
I guess I can finally call Jesse Plemons an Oscar nominee, so this is massive. There are obviously roles in The Power of the Dog that stand out a bit more (see later on in this list), but I think Plemons as the character George Burbank really does the trick enough that seeing him nominated here is a nice surprise. Even if Plemons isn’t playing a deranged character (which he does really well), he possesses this je ne sais quoi that always makes him fascinating to watch. Plemons could be reading a phone book and I’d be hooked. That really applies here with Jane Campion’s period piece, where he can allow other characters to shine around him, but he delivers straight up dramatic acting as fascinatingly as he can.
3. Belfast-Ciarán Hinds
Of the Belfast acting nominations that could have been selected, I am the happiest that Ciarán Hinds wound up here. If Belfast is meant to remind you of your own loved ones (especially during times of hardship), then Hinds pulls this off tremendously. Not to say that the other performances here weren’t good (rather they were the strong point of the film overall), but Hinds especially struck a chord with me. It’s nice to see him getting some Academy appreciation here. I don’t think he will win, but some acknowledgment for a performance that moves me like this is lovely.
2. CODA-Troy Kotsur
The highest point of CODA is Troy Kotsur’s wonderful performance as a rough-around-the-edges father that means well. Major congratulations to him for being the first deaf male performer to ever get nominated, and I’m hoping a film like CODA opens many doors. Kotsur is so deserving, as he is equal parts hilarious and highly connective as a source of emotion (the greatest scene of the film is hinged on his moving response to a specific action, and even just thinking about it brings me close to tears because of him alone). Quite frankly, I’d love to see Kotsur in everything after CODA.
1. The Power of the Dog-Kodi Smit-McPhee
An actor that I personally felt has been under-utilized or overlooked is Kodi Smit-McPhee, but things will dart in a whole new direction for him after his remarkable performance in The Power of the Dog. Mystery has to surround his character Peter Gordon, especially given the film’s interpretational ending; having this character be one of intrigue feels important to really sell the milieu of this climax. Not only is Smit-McPhee fascinating and full of a special something, but he is just a pleasure to watch even during the everyday moments of the film. From the obvious to the unknown, Smit-McPhee is perfect in this film, and it’s no wonder why he is dominating so many awards shows already.
Who I want to win: For this year’s particular awards show, I would love if Kodi Smit-McPhee — who has been slept on for too long — or Troy Kotsur — who now has a new side of his career ahead of him — won this award. Both turned in sensational performances, and they were both the most magnetic forces of their respective films that I couldn’t turn away from.
Who I think will win: Right now, I think one of the few certainties of this year’s Academy Awards is that Kodi Smit-McPhee will win. The Power of the Dog is presently on route to winning Best Picture, and it will need to secure at least two major wins in order to do so. Jane Campion is almost a sure lock, and I think Smit-McPhee is almost a guarantee as well. If anything were to change, I think it would be in favour of Troy Kotsur, since most Best Picture nominees typically win at least one award elsewhere; then again, it’s been a while since we’ve had a full ten nominees, and some films may go empty-handed (possibly CODA, if it doesn’t win for its writing instead of this category). For now, I’m going Kodi over CODA. A lot can change in the course of a month and a half.
Tune in tomorrow for our next Academy Award category! We’re reviewing every single nominee on every weekday.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.