One of the most exciting categories when it comes to this year’s Oscar race has got to be the Best Supporting Actor category. In it, there are three legends of acting facing off against each other: Brad Pitt (“Once Upon A Time in Hollywood”), Al Pacino (“The Irishman”) and Tom Hanks (“A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”).
I’ve had a Pitt/Pacino/Hanks top 3 [Predictions] for over a month now, I don’t see that changing anytime soon. You’ll get a slight push from Willem Dafoe (“The Lighthouse”) and Alan Alda (“Marriage Story”) but I see them remaining not more than #4 or #5, respectively. There could definitely be a push to enter those bottom 2 spots from the likes of Joe Pesci (“The Irishman”), Anthony Hopkins (“The Two Popes”), John Lithgow (Bombshell) and Christian Bale (Ford v Ferrari).
This is very much then a three-man-race. Pitt has never won the Oscar, so that could potentially make him the favorite. Hanks hasn’t been nominated since 2000’s “Cast Away” and 1995’s “Forrest Gump”. Pacino is an 8-time nominee and has won only once, in 1993 for Scent of a Woman. Hoo-ah.
Of course, we all know the rule: take these reactions with a grain of salt rather than treating them as gospel. Still, I will say that the film tested like gangbusters earlier this year, and Lionsgate clearly has confidence.