Best Supporting Actor: Ranking Every Nominee of the 97th Academy Awards
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Have we all recovered from the announcement for the 97th Academy Awards nominees yet? No? Well, we’ve reached the first full week of the Academy Awards Project, and we had a bit of a teaser for what’s to come when I covered the Best Director nominees last Friday. This week will be kicked off with what I typically begin this project with (when the categories won’t be split apart by a weekend in between like they were this year): both supporting acting categories. This year’s Best Supporting Actor nominees are actually quite strong, and I wouldn’t call any of the performances weak by any stretch. Having said that, we don’t do ties here over at Films Fatale, so ranking these fine performances is going to get rough. Don’t take the lower ranked actors as an indication that they are bad. What will help with my placements is considering what a supporting performance is meant to do. Which performances did not just shine as individual pieces of acting, but enhanced the leading performances — and the films that house them — as well? Who not only complimented scenes but stole them?
Here are your nominees for Best Supporting Actor ranked from worst to best.
Biggest Snub: Sing Sing-Clarence Maclin
I know I said that the five final nominees are all strong, but it feels wrong to not have Clarence Maclin from Sing Sing here either. There is something so beautiful about his performance. He revisits his time at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility, effectively playing a younger, fictionalized version of himself entering the acting program the prison has. Of course, this makes for a highly real performance, seeing as he relives inner demons and breakthroughs, but there’s the wonderful meta element of seeing Maclin acting roughly on purpose within the film, knowing that the real Maclin now is clearly a bonafide star with a handle of the art. Then there is the angle that we’re watching a literal change of heart that took place, and the man responsible for it reenacts it in a way that would have made the late Abass Kiarostami proud. There are many levels as to why Maclin is sensational in Sing Sing, and I cannot help but feel like some space could have been made for him in this category; at least he’s been nominated for helping co-write the Sing Sing screenplay, I suppose.
5. The Brutalist-Guy Pearce
First off, I am thrilled that Guy Pearce is finally an Oscar nominee after many years of being overlooked. I want to re-emphasize that I think he is great in The Brutalist as Harrison Buren, but I feel like I have to justify my reason for placing him last. Again, this is a highly competitive category where I consider everyone here worthy of being selected. Pearce is fantastically evil and complex in The Brutalist, but — and I am going to split hairs here — there were some moments (particularly his introductory scene, where Harrison comes into his home and barks angrily at the renovations being done) where Pearce comes off as a little bit cartoonish. Don’t get me wrong: people like this do exist, if the billionaire takeover as of late is any indication. I just never felt like there were any questionable moments from the other four nominees. Otherwise, I found Pearce’s performance easy to buy for the most part. You believe why he is so adored by his yes-men, but once he bares his fangs and shows what he is capable of, you can sense the red flags that were there the whole time. For better (mainly) or for worse (barely), Pearce’s performance in The Brutalist is unforgettable.
4. Anora-Yura Borisov
Another first-timer (there are four Oscar newbies in this category this year) but the one who truly feels like a newcomer, given that this is his breakthrough performance. Yura Borisov does some acting mastery in Anora as henchman Igor. You see, this is a role that could have easily been botched, overplayed, or underdone. Seeing as Igor begins his arc in the film as a simple lackey who abides by orders and is even a bit of the comedic relief found in Anora’s first sequence of true conflict, this could have been a single-noted performance that barely exists or could come off as false and buffoonish. Instead, Borisov understood the assignment that director-writer Sean Baker laid out for him: turn this side character — who is not granted any real identity or purpose outside of abiding henchmen-related orders — into a fully textured human being capable of change. Borisov does just that without ever going overboard, feeling like an actual person who rethinks himself and his life as the film proceeds. His one-on-one acting with Anora (Mikey Madison) towards the final act of the film also helps spotlight the importance of the titular sex worker’s reality check, and Borisov handles this with ease as well. Borisov is only this low because he is amazing at complimenting scenes but never truly steals them like other nominees; otherwise, consider Borisov an actor to watch from this point on.
3. A Complete Unknown-Edward Norton
People watch A Complete Unknown to see Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan (who crushes the role; more on that when I reach the Best Actor nominees later this month). However, people leave the theatre astounded by Edward Norton as Pete Seeger. What I love about this performance is not just how believable he is (Norton almost never possesses falsities in his work and is one of the more reliable actors of our time), or how effortlessly he can play the banjo (you can’t just pick up a banjo and play like an all-time great; this clearly took ages to perfect, and it is clear that Norton can play the banjo while watching). My biggest takeaway is how pure and reserved this performance is. Not once does Norton scream or mug to get your attention. Even when the screenplay for A Complete Unknown tugs Norton in the direction of being on-the-nose (which other actors would use as an opportunity to ham it up), Norton relents by dialing his mannerisms even further down, turning Seeger into a pacifist experiencing a conflict of feelings internally. While Norton always allows Chalamet to take centre stage, there are sequences where I was more glued to Norton despite his laid-back nature; that’s how you know how commanding Norton can be.
2. A Real Pain-Kieran Culkin
The two remaining nominees are a head-to-head between two Succession titans, and I am chuffed that these actors are getting work this good after the end of one of television’s great series. First off is Roman Roy, I mean Kieran Culkin, as the grieving, complicated Benji in A Real Pain. While clearly a leading performance promoted as a supporting one (although, because of the perspective of how A Real Pain was written, it’s clear that brother David is the protagonist observing Benji’s behaviour, so you can still argue that this is a supporting role, I guess), Culkin’s Benji claims the entire film. In typical Culkin fashion, Benji is unpredictable, entertaining, and animated; you’re forever flying by the seat of your pants. Culkin is so effortless at this that it’s difficult to know what dialogue and cues were written and what may be improvised. Of course, the subdued depression that overflows when the times are right are another layer of Culkin’s strengths; the thousand-yard stare that tells a fuller story than his feel-good antics ever will; the sobs that contain no words when Benji typically speaks a mile a minute to promise he is fine. Culkin embodies the many phases of grief and struggles with mental health. He is hilarious, but he never sullies the severity of the topic. He is out-there but fully real.
1. The Apprentice-Jeremy Strong
Here is the second Succession mainstay, this time it’s Kendall Roy (well, Jeremy Strong) as scummy lawyer and prosecutor Roy Cohn. Let me tell you this: when I saw Strong as Cohn in Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice, I instantly knew that the actor was due at least an Oscar nomination, if not the trophy itself. As previously discussed, supporting roles can either claim scenes or strengthen the leads’ work. Strong does both. He drives the start of The Apprentice by stealing every sequence with his commanding presence that feels natural (not like an actor trying to seem powerful; this feels intrinsic). As the film pivots and allows Donald Trump to go from pupil to a conductor of power, Strong dials Cohn back and allows the character to enhance Sebastian Stan’s takeover as Trump. Then there is that final act where Strong’s infamous use of method acting has never yielded better results than this. Strong somehow makes a monstrous man like Cohn sympathetic, especially during the prosecutor’s final days, with chameleon-esque acting that you will not be able to shake off. Believe me when I say that Strong floored me in this role, and I was convinced that I was going to be placing him under my category for the Biggest Snub of the category (potentially of the entire 97th Academy Awards) since I felt like The Apprentice wasn’t garnering the attention it deserved; I am thrilled to see Strong here, seeing as he delivers one of the great performances of 2024.
Who I Want To Win: I’m fine with any of the actors above winning, especially since no one here already has an Oscar (even four-time nominee Edward Norton). However, I am on the Jeremy Strong train because of how effective his work in The Apprentice is. Despite the nature of the film, don’t let politics get in the way of you seeing a magnificent performance by Strong; it may be some of the best work of his career thus far.
Who I Think Will Win: Keiran Culkin for A Real Pain. Without question. Culkin has been dominating this category since the awards season even began, and it’s easy to see why. I don’t think there is any way — at this point in time — that Culkin could even lose. I’m happy to see it as well, because Culkin is such a gifted actor. I only anticipate even more magic from him in future performances, but the time to honour him with an Oscar feels like it is right now, and the Academy — and many other ceremonies — is in the same line of thinking.
The Academy Awards Project will continue tomorrow with another category: Best Supporting Actress. We’re going to rank every single nominee in every single category, Monday through Friday. You don’t want to miss it!
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.