I’m not saying Andrea Riseborough will win Best Actress tonight, it’s a longshot, but there’s just this creeping feeling that she’s a much bigger threat than people believe her to be.
Last week I mentioned how Riseborough had around 70 actors and actresses vouching for her on social media during her “grassroots” campaign in January. That’s a lot of voters. You think they were happy about the brutal backlash her nomination received? Don’t think so.
Here’s an email that a voting actor sent me today:
I’ve spoken to more than a few voters these last few weeks who did exactly what I did: voted Riseborough. At least a dozen of them. We don’t care if Blanchett was great or Yeoh could make history, it’s all about the statement and voting Riseborough is a STATEMENT.
A statement. This voter is correct. There’s no doubt a lot of motivation for Riseborough’s celeb supporters to put her as their top choice on their ballot. They want to prove that not only was her nomination merited, but that she damn-well deserves to win.
Did the backlash make her a stronger contender?
Riseborough had to suffer through weeks of attacks. If you remember, many in the film media argued that Riseborough should have been disqualified just because she had a vocally supportive campaign (and Frances Fisher’s controversial tweeting).
I was convinced that Riseborough would get nominated for Best Actress, and I was right, but I’m not entirely sure she can win Actress. However, she’s probably a very strong #3 as we speak.