6. Jeremy Renner - American Hustle
Jeremy Renner was a hardly noticed workman of an actor until The Hurt Locker became the critical sensation that it did, eventually winning the Oscar for Best Picture despite its measly box office receipts. Along with the movie, Jeremy Renner's performance rightfully received a mountain of kudos, earning him his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor. The very next year, Renner followed that up with a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his work in Ben Affleck's sophomore directorial effort, The Town. Since then, Renner has mostly cashed in on his new high profile by appearing in a number of action flicks, from Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, to The Bourne Legacy, to The Avengers. He may once again though become a name uttered on the lips of Academy members with his upcoming performance in David O. Russell's newest feature, American Hustle. If you haven't yet heard of the movie, the film is a cinematic interpretation of the FBI's Abscam operation. The purpose of the operation was to expose corrupt politicians in the Tri-State area during the late 70's and early 80's by setting up a bribery sting using ex-con artists posing as Arab investors. One of the main targets of the sting operation was the popular Democratic Mayor of Camden, New Jersey, Angelo Errichetti, who Jeremy Renner portrays in the film. Errichetti was a descendant of first-generation Italian immigrants and apparently was quite the character. It will be interesting to see Renner take on what sounds like a fairly eccentric character, more so at least than some of the previous characters Renner has played. If he pulls it off with gusto and aplomb, I expect him to be in the thick of the Oscar race. The biggest obstacle for Renner, as is the case with some other potential Best Supporting Actor nominees, is what appears to be the ensemble nature of the film. David O. Russell has been red hot with the Academy over his last two features, particular with getting his actors Oscar nominations and victories, but with a cast that includes Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, and Louis C.K., there is simply not going to be enough kudos to go around for everybody. While I have no doubt that Renner will be categorized as a supporting actor, it's unclear which categories some of his fellow thespians on the film will be placed in, which could significantly hurt his Oscar hopes.