Oscars 2014: Best Actor

Hello, Bloggers, since I gave an in-depth look at the nominees for Best Actress yesterday, I will now run down the nominees for Best Actor.


Christian Bale, American Hustle: This is not only Bale's 2nd nomination and first for Best Actor, but his 2nd nomination for starring in a David O. Russell film, and O. Russell seems to be an actor's good luck charm these days. Whether or not Bale has a chance of winning remains to be seen, but this nomination not only highlights his talents and range as an actor, but the physical lengths he goes through for a role. He previously won for The Fighter where he really slimmed down and had an almost skeletal appearance, but in American Hustle, he really lets himself go so to speak.

Bruce Dern, Nebraska: Bruce Dern is the oldest nominee and, like with Judi Dench, that makes him very dangerous in this category. This is his 2nd nomination and the last time he was nominated was back in 1979 for his supporting turn in Coming Home. So, Dern may benefit from Academy voters thinking "It's time" and pull off an upset win because who knows how many chances he'll have to win again.

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street: Despite the film's slight controversy, Leonardo DiCaprio is on an awards roll with a Critics' Choice and Golden Globe win. This is also his 4th Oscar nomination and that makes him dangerous in this category as well. Not only that, but because he usually campaigns pretty hard and tends to get snubbed, it could be another while for him to get nominated. Seriously, this could finally be his year.

Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave: Before the awards shows started, it seemed that Chiwetel would be the frontrunner, that is until Matthew McConaughey started sweeping. But McConaughey getting snubbed at the BAFTAs could leave room for Ejiofor to win and making this a three-way-race in the Best Actor category at the Oscars. Regardless, Ejiofor finally landing an Oscar nod shows that he is finally seeing his hard work in Hollywood starting to pay off.

Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club: Maybe five years ago, many of us never would have guessed that Matthew McConaughey would be marching his way to an Oscar. But he has been on a roll ever since 2011 when he came out with The Lincoln Lawyer. Since he just won the SAG award for Best Actor, he has certainly maintained his momentum, although in a race as competitive as this, there are no guarantees. Even if he doesn't win, he still has the HBO series True Detective and the upcoming Christopher Nolan picture Interstellar as consolation prizes. Plus, I'm sure he will still deliver more awards worthy work in the future. Alright! Alright! Alright!

So, those are the nominees for Best Actor. Feel free to write down in the comments section who you think deserves the Oscar if you've seen any of the films that the actors are nominated for. As I said yesterday, I will continue to do more Oscar coverage until the ceremony on March 2nd. Thanks for reading!