3. Julie Roberts - August: Osage County
Julie Roberts is the female equivalent of Tom Hanks. Now, before you go all fetishy on me, I mean this strictly in terms of the trajectory of their two careers. Both stars were in their heydays during the 1990's, when you couldn't get a much bigger name than either thespian. Both were also fairly successful with the Academy at this time, being nominated for multiple Oscars and winning three, if we are allowed to extend the the edges of the decade by just a smidge. In the proceeding decade, the Aughts, while both have consistently been able to find work and have appeared in a few big films, it is undeniable that both stars have faded a bit and in terms of Oscars, they have been absent. The pendulum appears to be swinging back the other way for the duo this year though, as Tom Hanks has his double threat of Captain Phillips and Saving Mr. Banks, while Julie Roberts has a significant role in the ensemble piece, August: Osage County. As covered in the first entry of this article, August: Osage County is an adaptation of a Tracy Letts play that stars Meryl Streep as a cantankerous matriarch of a large Oklahoman clan. While I haven't seen the play, my understanding from both the pre-release buzz on the film, as well as synopses of the play, is that Roberts' role of Barbara Weston is second only to Streep's Violet Weston in terms of prominence and screen time. In a film with this large an ensemble cast, particularly a large female cast, category considerations will become a major concern for Ms. Roberts. I have the feeling Ms. Roberts will be campaigned alongside Ms. Streep for Best Actress in order to make room for more potential nominations in Best Supporting Actress, but other prognosticators disagree, currently listing her as a possible candidate for Best Supporting Actress. With the Weinstein Company behind the wheel, it will likely ultimately come down to what is most advantageous to maximize the film's Oscar profile. As we saw last year with Christoph Waltz's campaign for his performance in Django Unchained, the Weinsteins have no qualms with switching categories, and then switching back again, if it is in there interest. Another possible complication for Ms. Roberts caused by the film's large cast of brand name actors is that she may simply be outshined. Even if you are doing decent work, there is nothing like costars doing their prime work to banish you into the shadows. Regardless of the final outcome though, this will likely be her closest brush she will have had with the Academy in quite some time.