MUSICAL NUMBERS
Cate Blanchett, who plays a conductor in “Tár,” and Austin Butler, who’s the King of Rock ’n’ Roll in “Elvis,” below, could join a sizable group of Oscar winners playing musicians. —
18
lead acting Oscar recipients (10 women, eight men) have triumphed in roles as musical performers. This means that roughly …
2000+
The 21st century has been especially fruitful for musician lead characters, with Adrien Brody (“The Pianist”), Jamie Foxx (“Ray”), Reese Witherspoon (“Walk the Line”), Marion Cotillard (“La Vie en Rose”), Jeff Bridges (“Crazy Heart”), Malek, Renée Zellweger (“Judy”) and Chastain winning.
10%
... of lead acting Oscar winners in history could have played, or sang, themselves offstage when their speeches ran long.
No. 2
Musical performer is the second-most common profession/aspiration attached to lead characters played by Oscar winners. No. 1 is military/ law enforcement professional.
1937, 1943
Luise Rainer and James Cagney were first to win lead actress and actor awards for tuneful characters, for “The Great Ziegfeld” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” respectively.
2019, 2022
Rami Malek and Jessica Chastain are the most recent musical winners in the lead actor and actress categories, for “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” respectively.
5
Only Bridges, Liza Minnelli (“Cabaret”), Diane Keaton (“Annie Hall”), Robert Duvall (“Tender Mercies”) and Holly Hunter (“The Piano”) won for playing fictional characters. Biopics’ dominance favors Butler over Blanchett.