At least two male actors are off on their own while dealing with the women in their lives. David Strathairn is a lovelorn admirer of Frances McDormand’s untethered RV owner in “Nomadland” while Anthony Hopkins is Olivia Colman’s aging father and housemate who struggles with dementia in “The Father.” There are other testosterone-driven titles such as “Tenet,” a remake of “The Boys in the Band” and Paul Greengrass’ Western drama “News of the World,” with Tom Hanks as Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, a widowed Civil War veteran who volunteers to take an orphaned German girl who was snatched from her family by the Kiowa tribe while engaging in a danger-filled trip to reunite with her aunt and uncle. While there are several supporting actresses, including Mare Winningham and Elizabeth Marvel, the focus is on the growing relationship between 12-year-old newcomer Helena Zengel and Hanks, which at times somewhat echoes of “True Grit.”
According to the nearly 3,600 voters who have made predictions on the awards website Gold Derby, here is how the front-runners are stacking up in the actor races for now.
Best Actor
Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”): Boseman, who died in August 28 after a four-year battle with colon cancer, is likely to join the list of the seven performers who earned posthumous Oscar nominations: Jeanne Eagels (1929’s “The Letter”), James Dean (1955’s “East of Eden,” 1956’s “Giant”), Spencer Tracy (1967’s “Guess Who’s Coming for Dinner”) Peter Finch (1976’s “Network”), Ralph Richardson (1984’s “Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan”), Massimo Troisi (1994’s “Il Postino”) and Heath Ledger (2008’s “The Dark Knight”). Given that Boseman’s role as a horn player has earned universal acclaim so far, earning such adjectives as “brilliant,” “electric” and “heroic,” he just might join Finch and Ledger by being the third actor to claim a posthumous trophy.
Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”): For whatever reason, the ravages of dementia has been front and center in several films this season, ranging from the acclaimed documentary “Dick Johnson is Dead” and the horror film “Relic” to lesser-known titles like “The Artist’s Wife,” “Falling” and “Supernova,” starring Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci. But the most glowing reviews belong to Hopkins, who piece by piece loses his grip on reality in this Florian Zeller drama. He, of course, owns a lead Oscar for his signature role as Hannibal Lecter in 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs.” But given that Sir Anthony won for a role that lasted only 16 minutes on the screen, this 82-year-old legend deserves to finally claim a book-end statuette after being passed by for his other four bids in 1993’s “Remains of the Day,” 1995’s “Nixon,” 1997’s “Amistad” and 2019’s “The Two Popes.”
