Best Actor:
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher- Possibly. It all depends on his choice of projects. While he is usually a staple in mainstream comedy, he'll occasionally take risks with smaller films. He does have the indie Freeheld set for release next year and if that fares well or is set up to be a contender, then we could see him make a return.
Bradley Cooper, American Sniper- More than likely. He received his 3rd consecutive acting nomination and 4th overall since he was also nominated this year for producing American Sniper. So he has become quite a fixture at the Academy. But even if he doesn't win this year, he shouldn't feel too bad because Sniper is killing it at the box office and he is still Rocket Raccoon.
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game- Possibly. It depends on whether Marvel will keep him too busy from seeking out smaller films since he is Doctor Strange. But if that isn't the case and he does awards-worthy projects, then we could see him make a return. Thankfully, he became a member of the Oscar club this year and doesn't just have respect from the TV community who awarded him his surprise Emmy.
Michael Keaton, Birdman- Not sure. I would say that I doubt it because of his age, but then again, I'm sure a lot of us didn't expect Christopher Plummer to get a second nomination which we won for. But he is unlikely to ever get a role like Riggan Thomson ever again. So, I don't know. They could give him the Oscar because of that but we shall see.
Eddie Redmayne, Theory of Everything- Absolutely. Even though he doesn't have a slew of projects lined up, one that he has is the upcoming biopic The Danish Girl which is about one of the first people to undergo sex-reassignment surgery and is directed by recent Oscar winner Tom Hooper. Although, if I were him, I would sign on for a few projects now because even though he and Keaton have frontrunner status, a win is never guaranteed.
Best Actress:
Marion Cotillard, Two Days, One Night- I don't see why not. This is her 2nd nomination, so the Academy must be fond of her. Plus, she has the upcoming adaptation of Macbeth distributed by Harvey Weinstein in which she plays none other than Lady Macbeth.
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything- Absolutely. Like Eddie Redmayne, she is a young talent and has plenty of acting years left to win the gold. So, if she picks more projects that fit into the Academy's wheelhouse, I'm positive she'll be returning to the ceremony in the near future.
Julianne Moore, Still Alice- I would imagine so. Along with Steve Carell, she has the movie Freeheld set for release this year. But she still looks poised to win this year because who knows how many 'Moore' chances she'll have.
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl- Possibly. Kind of like Carell, it depends on her choice in projects and whether or not she can fight typecasting. If she is able to, then she should be fine.
Reese Witherspoon, Wild- Depends on choice in projects. If she hopes to stick around at the ceremony and become a fixture, she'll have to eschew from romantic comedies and maybe find a balance between mainstream fare and smaller films that allow her to take risks.
Best Supporting Actor:
Robert Duvall, The Judge- Doubt it. He is an older living legend at 84 who already won an Oscar Best Actor back in 1984 for Tender Mercies and he has nothing to prove.
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood- Probably. Although he doesn't strike me as the type of actor that does movies for awards, he still has 4 Oscar overall nominations (2 for writing the Before...sequels and 2 supporting actor nominations for this and Training Day). So they are fond of his work.
Edward Norton, Birdman- Probably. It has been a while since he was nominated, with his last one being for Best Actor for American History X in 1999. So, the Academy could look at this nomination as then saying "welcome back" and hopefully, he'll be given more opportunities to win in the future.
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher- Probably. This is his 2nd nomination in this category so the Academy must be pretty fond of his work. Aside from his work as the Hulk, he still mostly sticks to smaller films that the Oscars lean towards. So, I would imagine we'll see him again.
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash- Doubt it. Even though he is almost the same age as Michael Keaton, something tells me he may not have another shot at winning. It could be because character actors that win or get nominated in the supporting category (Chris Cooper, Jim Broadbent, John Hawkes, etc.) tend to end up being one-and-done deals.
Best Supporting Actress:
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood- Doubt it. Even though she is a strong frontrunner to win an award for film, she is heading back to television with CSI: Cyber. It is also a matter of whether or not she can find decent film roles at her age.
Laura Dern, Wild- Possibly. She and her family are well-connected in the industry and they did give her a surprise nomination this year. But if she were to win in the future, it might be in this category because the supporting categories are typically more kind to character actors and actresses like Dern.
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game- More than likely. She already landed a 2nd nomination by the age of 30, so the Academy might be aware that she'll have more chances to win the gold. If she continues to do more awards-y projects, like the upcoming Everest set for release this year, then she'll be in good hands.
Emma Stone, Birdman- More than likely. Even though she is an audience darling, she has also won love from the critics and now the Academy thanks to this nomination. Plus, she has the upcoming Woody Allen film Irrational Man coming up and a lot of us know how much they love to award his ladies. Yeah, we might see her at the ceremony again soon.
Meryl Streep, Into The Woods- This one needs no explanation. We might as well pencil in her 20th nomination for next year.
So those are my thoughts as to whether or not the 20 acting nominees will be back at the Oscar ceremony. If you agree or disagree, please feel free to write your thoughts in the comments section. Thanks for reading!
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