Oscars 2015: Predicting The Winners

2. Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role

The Nominees: Steve Carell (Foxcatcher), Bradley Cooper (American Sniper), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Michael Keaton (Birdman), Eddie Redmayne (The Theory Of Everything) Who Will Win? Michael Keaton (Birdman) Who Should Win? Eddie Redmayne (The Theory Of Everything) Michael Keaton playing a washed-up actor best known for playing a superhero in the nineties sounds like the most unsubtle meta-casting imaginable. Heck, he's even called Birdman. Was Val Kilmer second in line? But just as Birdman is more than a take down of modern blockbusters, so is Keaton's performance much more than an autobiographical turn, encompassing a frank mental breakdown and exploring creative ego. Still, there's a niggling sense that his victory would overshadow the incredible work Eddie Redmayne did as Stephen Hawking. It'd be easy for him to get lost alongside Benedict Cumberbatch's Alan Tuing as another British genius, but the role is packed full of subtleties, in both a physical (the body degradation is steadily realised) and emotional way. Although, had Jake Gyllenhaal been nominated, then obviously he should have won.