THE NEW NORM

Emilia Jones and Troy Kotsur in “CODA”

Is this the year the Academy expands its definition of “Oscar-worthy”?

By Jack Smart

DEAR BACKSTAGE READER,

For many, the new year is a time for reflection and anticipation, for both looking back and forward in the hopes of charting the best way toward the future. For awards editors such as myself, it’s an especially apt time to take stock. Forget the holidays; awards season is the most wonderful time of the year.

While 2020 saw Hollywood reacting to and working around the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 has brought a return to almost normal—better than normal, judging by the sheer amount of film production and delayed releases. Multiple contenders from major studios and indie distributors alike make for a thrillingly competitive race to the 94th Academy Awards ceremony this coming March.

Given the wealth of options, could this be the year Academy voters expand their definition of what makes for awardsworthy filmmaking?

As of now, we can look to the Gotham and Spirit Awards nominations for clues; both indicated that Maggie Gyllenhaal could shake up the writing, directing, and best picture races with her feature filmmaking debut, “The Lost Daughter.” That’s one of an impressive number of female-led films from the game-changing Netflix: Rebecca Hall and Halle Berry also stepped behind the camera for directorial debuts “Passing” and “Bruised,” respectively; and Jane Campion, notably one of the only women ever to be nominated for a best directing Oscar, could repeat that feat with “The Power of the Dog.” This year, Chloé Zhao made Oscar history when she became the second woman ever to win in the category; 2021 also marked the first time that two women were nominated in the same year. We can only hope that this type of gender parity will become commonplace.

In terms of more routine storylines, there’s no shortage this season of what we colloquially refer to as “Oscar bait.” Big-budget, star-studded affairs like “A Quiet Place Part II,” “Dune,” “No Time to Die,” “The French Dispatch,” “West Side Story,” and “Don’t Look Up,” which were all originally scheduled to be released in 2020, are all vying for awards now. Then there are the usual period pieces and resonant family dramas; nominations for “Belfast,” “The Power of the Dog,” “Nightmare Alley,” and “Licorice Pizza,” in particular, seem inevitable.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voters also tend to favor icons playing other icons, which this year means an embarrassment of riches. Massive Hollywood stars lead the likes of “Respect,” “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” “Spencer,” and “House of Gucci,” all playing within the Academy’s favorite genre: the biopic. Nothing fits that bill better than “King Richard”—both a biographical piece and a triumphant, crowdpleasing sports movie—in which Will Smith reminds us he’s both a great actor and a star. And “Being the Ricardos,” led by Oscar winners Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem, with Aaron Sorkin behind the camera, has the Academy-friendly bonus of being a love letter to Hollywood.

But does the return of conventional popcorn fare have to mean conventional winners? Trailblazing distributors like Bleecker Street (“Mass”!) and Apple TV+ (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”!) could shake things up. And previous best picture winners A24 (with “C’mon C’mon,” “Red Rocket,” and “The Humans”) and Neon (with “The Worst Person in the World,” “Titane,” and “Spencer”) both have plenty of films in the mix.

Plus, there are opportunities for the Academy to make good on its promise of recognizing diversity both in front of and behind the camera. With “CODA,” it could honor storytelling by, for, and about disabled people. “Tick, Tick...Boom!” and the animated documentary “Flee” feature authentically LGBTQ+ storylines. 2022 could be the rare year when best picture goes to a film featuring leading roles played by women (last year’s “Nomadland” stands almost alone) or nonwhite creatives (thank goodness for “Moonlight” and “Parasite”).

It’s an especially pivotal new year for Hollywood, in which the industry has a chance to establish a new normal. Whether the Academy and other voting bodies seize the opportunity to expand their horizons is what I’m looking for most come January.

Sincerely,

Jack