Now That the Oscar Nominations Are Out, the Real Acting Begins

Now that the nominees for the 2017 Academy Awards have been announced, it’s time for the real acting to start. Never mind the preparation the actors went through to bring these characters to life, or the mind-bending stress the directors survived to accomplish their vision: their most important work starts now. How they take on the challenge of being in the Oscar Race will determine whether they deserve the gold or not.

In that, the Oscar Race is like a bizarro closed election. The actors (and it’s mostly actors, though some directors have to play along, too) have to make the rounds, campaigning for the golden statue, and all the praise and adoration (and bumps in pay) that come with it. But, unlike politicians, they can’t say outright why they deserve to win. They can’t even admit that they want to win. It’s a true test of acting, one that harkens back to the silent film days: showing intention without speaking. Only, of course, they do have scripts, carefully crafted by publicists and managers. So maybe the more apt comparison — especially given La La Land’s record-tying nominations — is jazz. In Oscar Race Acting, the beauty of the performance is in what the actors don’t say, how they don’t act.

To dismiss the Oscar Race because it’s political misses the point. Of course it’s political. But so are auditions, contract negotiations, and on-screen performances. They’re focused on perception, on relationships, on being convincing. The end goal isn’t policy-related, but that doesn’t mean it’s not political, at least broadly speaking.

More to the point though: so often, culture critics complain that nuanced, challenging performances are all too often overshadowed by big, desperate, actorly performances. How do we know they’re acting unless they gain 30 lbs and spend the entirety of the film in a wheelchair? But, see, Oscar Race Acting is all about nuance. In fact, if you notice it at all, it means the actor is failing.

So here are three Oscar Race Performances to look out for:

Casey Affleck

Manchester by the Sea

Ben’s younger, artsier brother is, by all accounts, the frontrunner in the Best Actor category. I haven’t seen Manchester by the Sea yet, but I don’t doubt he’s incredible. But the character of Casey Affleck, Tortured Artist — which has given him a Kristen Stewart-like charm in most of his interviews over the years — is vastly different from the character he needs to play to ingratiate himself to Academy voters.

What He Needs to Do: He needs to somehow make it clear that he wants it — which, of course he does — without losing too much of his I’m-Not-Ben edges. This basically means smiling. Telling anecdotes. Lowering his punchable-ness. And, likely, he’ll have to change his dismissive tune regarding the sexual harassment allegations that keep popping up on social media. He’ll need to act humble, apologetic — especially given the climate of gender relations right now. That’s not easy for a dude from Boston.

Meryl Streep

Florence Foster Jenkins

Does Meryl deserve another Oscar nomination? Oh, probably. Does she need one? Certainly not. But, this feels like a nomination for Best Golden Globe Speech more than anything else (he said, having never seen Florence Foster Jenkins).

What She Needs to Do: Her role, which she’s certainly up for, is to show that despite whatever her real feelings are, she does still give a tiny bit of a damn about this honour. She can’t seem ungrateful, nor can she seem too shocked, lest she succumb to Taylor Swift False Modesty Syndrome. Most challenging of all, she’ll need to subtly admit that Amy Adams deserved her place on the nominee list, without actually saying so. Because there is a thin line between being supportive and patronizing, and walking that line might be Meryl’s biggest acting challenge yet.

Mel Gibson

Hacksaw Ridge (Director)

Recently, I re-watched the Lethal Weapon movies. Whatever your nostalgia is telling you, the truth is they don’t hold up. But, what I realized was — and this isn’t groundbreaking — that Mel Gibson, Charming Rascal, is gone forever. And, with this nod from his peers, it’s likely time to retire the other image of Mel Gibson, too: you know, the Racist Ranting one. So, where does that leave Gibson?

What He Needs to Do: His performance here will be very difficult. He can’t stay penitent forever, but if he shows too much charisma, it’ll read as proud, unrepentant. Luckily, as a director, he’ll be expected to make less public appearances in his own personal campaign. But what you’ll want to watch for is how he’ll be creating a completely new Mel Gibson character. Sombre, serious, but with safe flashes of self-deprecating wit. He’s too old for that Riggs shit, and the world might not be ready for whoever Mel Gibson really is. So, like any great actor/director, he’s got to bring something entirely original to life.

BONUS: Amy Adams

The role of the snubbed actor is almost impossible to pull off. Gracious, humbly hiding the internal rage. It’s enough to drive people insane: just look at Courtney Love. But, Amy’s got this. She was born for this role.

Which is what makes it the most heartbreaking performance of the year.