Oscars 2022: who might triumph at next year’s ceremony?
It’s not often that the word unusual gets attached to the Oscars, one of the most staid and predictable nights of the year, as sober as the Golden Globes is drunk. But after an unusual year, the awards season followed suit, extended by two months, films dropping in and out of the race and some that might otherwise have been ignored instead taking centre stage.
But when the night finally arrived, things had settled back into a rhythm, so much so that looking back to the last time we made recklessly early predictions, seven out of 10 ended up receiving a nod with two of them winning (the other three were from films that were taken off the schedule).
So, with some vague sense of confidence, here goes our look ahead to 2022:
Adam Driver
After graduating from a best supporting actor nomination for BlacKkKlansman to best actor for Marriage Story just a year later, the next 12 months could well push Adam Driver closer to a win with three awardsfriendly films on the way. The two most likely to appeal to the Academy (his Cannes-premiering Sparks musical Annette, co-starring Marion Cotillard, could be a little too arthouse for voters) both come from Ridley Scott and both tell violent true stories from Europe, albeit from vastly different time periods and with vastly different characters at their centre. The first, The Last Duel, supposed to be part of the most recent Oscars season before being pushed back, tells the story of best friends in 14th century France who go to war after one is accused of raping the other’s wife. It’s delicate territory but the screenplay, which reunites Oscarwinners Ben Affleck and Matt Damon (the latter playing the lead), also includes input from one of the most empathetic female screenwriters working today, Nicole Holofcener, last nominated for Can You Ever Forgive Me?, a strange choice given her history of small-scale everyday comedies but one that implies some necessary sensitivity. At the other end of the scale is his doomed character in the Lady Gagaled drama House of Gucci about a murderous plot within the Italian fashion house that with its starry cast and juicy fact-based premise could also ignite.
Brian Tyree Henry
A bit of a wild card here since very little is known about the film he’s starring in but Brian Tyree Henry is someone who’s felt primed for Academy attention for a number of years now. The Yale-trained actor is best known for his small screen role in Atlanta, a performance that won him an Emmy nomination (he scored a second for a guest spot on This is Us), but has garnered most acclaim for his stage work, including a Tony nomination for Kenneth Lonergan’s Lobby Hero. He was in the Oscars conversation for his supporting role in 2018’s If Beale Street Could Talk despite starring in just one scene (his crushing monologue was proof that he’s set for bigger things) and while his upcoming appearance in Joe Wright’s Cyrano might be too small for a nom, he’s also starring alongside Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence in PTSD drama Red, White and Water. It’s