Oscar host Chris Rock is just a stone’s throw away from tackling the diversity issue plaguing this Sunday’s awards show. But to “what” is precisely what makes the 88th Academy Awards telecast potentially the most exciting – or calamitous – in its history.
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Though Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs implemented a new mandate to alter the makeup of the organization’s majority white, male membership, Jayson Jackson, producer of Netflix’s Oscar-nominated docu-flick “What Happened, Miss Simone?” believes the focus should instead shift towards funding more stories of color.
Rock also has to keep moving a 3-1/2-hour live show aimed principally at celebrating the year in movies and entertaining Hollywood’s biggest players inside the Dolby Theatre, as well as television viewers. Her win was even made more impressive when Denzel Washington also won that same evening as best actor for “Training Day”.
The 41-year-old star is favourite to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his role in the epic and gruelling The Revenant.
Should Have Been Nominated: “Ex Machina” seriously engages one of the most persistent philosophical conundrums of our time and brings thrills out of plenty of chit-chat. When I asked him about this, Carlock said that he thought it might be wise for the Oscars to pare down expectations, and allow hosts to focus on talking directly to the audience in the theater and to the camera, as he hopes Chris Rock might be able to do as host this year. So I look at that and go, ‘Great, ‘ because everybody’s thinking about that now.
While 19 of our 27 Experts are predicting that “The Revenant” is going to win Best Picture, four of them favor “The Big Short” and another four say “Spotlight”. I hadn’t [hosted] in a while, and I’m in between projects…and let’s not get it twisted: “I’m only here because Ellen [DeGeneres] said no”.
When he asked them if they had seen the year’s Best Picture nominees – “Sideways”, “Finding Neverland”, “Million Dollar Baby”, “The Aviator” – not one answered yes.
But now Rock is resurfacing, tweeting once more about the racial controversy surrounding this year’s awards. The famous line, “You like me, you really like me” was often attributed to Field’s Academy Awards speech when she won Best Actress for her performance in “Places of the Heart”. “I enjoy how he can properly play dramatic roles”.
But one thing is for sure, he is never going to please everyone.
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Vikander is competing with “Carol” star Rooney Mara, on her second nomination, and Britain’s Kate Winslet, who earned wide acclaim for her work in “Steve Jobs” – and already has a best actress Oscar for “The Reader”.
