Win or lose at tonight’s glittering Oscar ceremony, unsung British actress Andrea Riseborough is already guaranteed a place in Academy Awards history. If she manages to land a coveted gold statuette, her victory would be virtually certain to trigger sweeping changes to the already-strict rules that govern how nominees are selected.
Should the To Leslie star fail to land tonight’s Best Actress award, however, her defeat is likely to spark further uproar among household name A-listers such as Jennifer Aniston, Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci.
They campaigned rigorously for her and branded the Academy “elitist and exclusive” for launching a “review” following her surprise nod.
Either way, the 41-year-old Geordie actress, who has appeared in more than 30 films including Made in Dagenham, and Brighton Rock, will remain the centre of attention in a convoluted scandal that continues to send tremors through Hollywood.
Last week Andrea spoke out for the first time since the Academy announced its rules review in late January – days after her nomination for her role in the independent movie – saying she has been “deeply impacted” by the “very confusing” controversy.
One commentator believes her being shortlisted was so controversial simply because it challenged Hollywood’s long held “conventional wisdom that only studio-backed pictures have the resources to score Oscar nominations”.
So what, exactly, is the Newcastle-born star supposed to have done wrong?
Absolutely nothing. But some Academy members claim that one or more of her celebrity supporters – who also include Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet, Mia Farrow, Susan Sarandon and Edward Norton – may have violated its strict rules, in particular Number 11, titled References to Other Nominees.
It states, in the run-up to the awards “any tactic that singles out ‘the competition’ by name or title is expressly forbidden”.
In Andrea’s case, it is thought this may have alluded to an Instagram post on the To Leslie account that compared her chances of winning to Cate Blanchett, one of her rivals for tonight’s Best Actress crown. Rules state public comparison is not allowed. Academy CEO Bill Kramer, who did not name Andrea directly, said in a statement that social media tactics “caused concern”.
It has also been claimed that famous fans of To Leslie, in which Andrea plays an alcoholic single mother who wins the lottery then blows every penny, went beyond hosting private screening parties for Academy members, which is allowed. And they are alleged to have staged lavish events to promote the film.
In a back-and-forth row, however, several stars took umbrage and one, Sleepy Hollow actress Christina Ricci, accused the Academy of being “elitist” and singling out Andrea because her performance was in a low-budget movie that took a mere £22,000 in its single week in cinemas.
Hollywood Reporter’s Seth Abramovitch says that, among the star’s A-list followers “Riseborough’s triumph was trumpeted as a watershed moment for independent film and a stake to the heart of conventional wisdom that only studio-backed pictures have the resources to score nominations”.
Jailed former Miramax mogul Harvey Weinstein famously mounted multimillion-dollar “guerilla campaigns” to win awards, organising lavish parties and superstar meet-and-greets for voting members.
The “plucky underdog” narrative around Andrea’s nomination has since morphed into something much more sinister and contentious when it was pointed out that black performers have been completely shut out of this year’s Best Actress race.
They include Viola Davis in The Woman King and Till’s Danielle Deadwyler.
Awards expert Abramovitch said: “All of it has added up to a very peculiar Hollywood controversy.
“And here sits a shell-shocked Riseborough – a talented artist who just wants people to experience her work.”
The Academy has a total of 9,921 members who are allowed to vote in their specific categories, from acting and directing to lighting and sound – as well as general categories such as Best Film. A longtime member said: “It must be agony for Andrea to find herself in the middle of a firestorm that has in no way been of her making.
“I think, at first, there may have been sour grapes from some senior quarters that she made it as a nominee – even though her standout performance in To Leslie clearly warrants recognition.
“It’s such a shame her first Oscar race has turned out this way.”
In a US interview, Andrea admitted: “It’s been confusing. I’m coming to terms with what the nomination means for me.”
But she added: “It not only makes sense that this conversation would be sparked, but it is necessary.
“The film industry is abhorrently unequal in terms of opportunity. But I’m mindful not to speak of the experience of other people because they are better placed to speak and I want to listen.”
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