Blunt scored with last year for
“Mary Poppins,” and voters’
populist tendencies could help
Nyong’o, who stars in the biggest
hit of the contenders. The case
for Nyong’o is further bolstered
by the turn itself; actors should
respond to her dazzling perform-
ance that features not one, but
two, roles, characters set against
each other.
LEAD ACTOR
Adam Driver,“Marriage Story”
Joaquin Phoenix,“Joker”
Leonardo DiCaprio,“Once
Upon a Time ... in Hollywood”
Robert De Niro,“The Irishman”
Eddie Murphy,“Dolemite Is My
Name”
On the cusp:Antonio Banderas,
“Pain and Glory”; Christian Bale,
“Ford v Ferrari”; Jonathan Pryce,
“The Two Popes”; Taron Egerton,
“Rocketman”; Adam Sandler,
“Uncut Gems”; Robert Pattinson,
“The Lighthouse”
As I’ve mentioned in other
columns, the lead actor category
is so loaded that you could make
two different lists of five per-
formances, and each would be
valid and defensible. The wild
card at SAG might be Egerton, the
star of a movie that has been
widely seen and mostly enjoyed.
It’s a big, transformative star turn
featuring singing, dancing and
loads of sequins, appealing to
every SAG voter who got their
start playing dress-up as a kid.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Laura Dern,“Marriage Story”
Jennifer Lopez,“Hustlers”
Margot Robbie,“Bombshell”
Maggie Smith,“Downton
Abbey”
Scarlett Johansson,“Jojo
Rabbit”
On the cusp:Annette Bening,
“The Report”; Zhao Shuzhen,
“The Farewell”; Florence Pugh,
“Little Women”; Margot Robbie,
“Once Upon a Time ... in Holly-
wood”; Da’Vine Joy Randolph,
“Dolemite Is My Name”; Nicole
Kidman, “Bombshell”
Johansson is a safe bet for herlead turn in “Marriage Story” and
has a good chance for showing up
here too for the way she provided
the emotional foundation for
“Jojo Rabbit.” I don’t think the
movie works ... but it really
doesn’t work without her.
Robbie could well earn two
nominations too. I think she’s far
better in Tarantino’s movie, as
the film’s success depends on her
sunny, ethereal performance. But
Robbie’s “Bombshell” character
has a bigger arc, and that’s the
kind of thing that awards voters
notice.SUPPORTING ACTORAl Pacino,“The Irishman”
Brad Pitt,“Once Upon a Time ...
in Hollywood”
Tom Hanks,“A Beautiful Day in
the Neighborhood”
Anthony Hopkins,“The Two
Popes”
Jamie Foxx,“Just Mercy”On the cusp:Joe Pesci, “The
Irishman”; Willem Dafoe, “The
Lighthouse”; Sterling K. Brown,
“Waves”; Alan Alda, “Marriage
Story”; Timothée Chalamet,
“Little Women”; Shia LaBeouf,
“Honey Boy”; John Lithgow,
“Bombshell”Supporting actor is a crowded
category too. How else could
Dafoe and Pesci be on the outside
looking in? An Alda nomination
could provide “Marriage Story”
with a clean sweep of the catego-
ries. SAG voters have nominated
Brown repeatedly lately, and he
won two years ago for his lead
turn on NBC’s “This Is Us.” He
plays another loving dad (a little
more demanding, yes, but still
doting) in “Waves,” and, if enough
voters see this beautiful indie
film, he could make the cut. 8POSSIBLE lead actor
and actress nominees
are Taron Egerton (far
left) who’s not a shoo-
in, and Lupita Nyong’o
(left), who is. For sup-
porting roles: Sterling
K. Brown is on the cusp,
and Margot Robbie is a
likely nominee.David ApplebyParamount PicturesLionsgateClaudette BariusUniversal PicturesA24
S49THE ENVELOPE LOS ANGELES TIMES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2019