8. Margo Martindale - August: Osage County
You've probably never heard of Margo Martindale, because I know I sure hadn't until very recently. She is a character actress who has been working away, largely unnoticed, playing small parts in films and television shows such as Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Win Win, and most recently, the FX Cold War espionage series, The Americans. If you hadn't noticed her up to this point, all that is very likely to change if Harvey Weinstein, Grant Heslov, and George Clooney have anything to say about it. August: Osage County is an adaptation of a play of the same name, written by Tracy Letts (Killer Joe). If you are currently unfamiliar with the play (as am I), you will be familiar with the movie once this year's awards season is through. The play tells the story of a large Oklahoman clan who is forced to have a family reunion of sorts when they learn that the family's bitter matriarch, Violet Weston (Meryl Streep), has cancer. The set-up sounds like something that would have appealed to the Academy more in the late 1950's and early 1960's than in present day, but with the aforementioned super-producers backing it, along with an all-star cast, I would prepare yourself for an onslaught of awards notices for the film. With so many big names appearing in the film, you may ask why someone with such relatively small status as Margo Martindale would receive plaudits from the Academy? The answer would be the role Ms. Martindale plays, which is that of Mattie Fae Aiken. Mattie is the sister of matriarch Violet Weston and is apparently quite the character herself. She is vindictive to her son (Benedict Cumberbatch), has a strained relationship with her husband (Chris Cooper), and is an all-around jaded individual. The part sounds like the kind of thing that typically attracts Academy members, but my strong confidence in the role's Oscar prospects has most to do with the history role has already had with awards bodies. Ronni Reed, who played the part on Broadway, won a Tony award for her performance and was also nominated for a Drama Desk award. Obviously, Reed and Martindale are two separate human beings who undoubtedly approached the role differently, but the proof that awards bodies have responded to the role is already established, which is a good thing for Ms. Martindale. The key may be though whether the film's campaigners, like the play did with the Tony's, decide to campaign both the roles of Violet and Barbara Weston (Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, respectively) as co-leads, or whether they drop Barbara down to supporting. If she has to contend with Julia Roberts in her category, Ms. Martindale's chances fall significantly.