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Friday, November 19, 2021

THE LATEST ON HOLLYWOOD'S BIGGEST RACES

NOVEMBER 19, 2021

The Fashionably Late Contenders Take Center Stage

If you were looking for something to do on any night this past week, you could easily find an awards event somewhere in Los Angeles. The weeks before Thanksgiving are some of the busiest for screenings and premieres and, after a very quiet awards season last year because of the pandemic, things are back in full swing this year, with some small tweaks (Vaccination cards required! Temperatures taken!). Awards Insider got a first look at many of the late bloomers of this season, and, with much of the talent in town for Q&As and events, got a peek into what their messaging will be as their campaigns move ahead.

I’m Rebecca Ford, and last night I attended one of the first screenings of Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up in Westwood. It was followed by a Q&A with McKay and the stars of the film, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, and Meryl Streep.Quite the lineup! Between them, they have 37 Oscar nominations and six wins. That kind of star power plays so well to any audience, and there were plenty of people giving standing ovations as each person took to the stage.

What I found interesting was that it’s very clear that, like McKay’s last couple of films, this one is very focused on a pressing issue: the climate crisis. DiCaprio delivers an excellent performance as a scientist who is attempting to warn the world about a meteor heading toward Earth. Which isn’t such a huge leap for the actor who has been spending much of his time and energy and money trying to warn the world about the climate crisis for years. So much of the Q&A after the screening was focused on McKay and DiCaprio speaking on the crisis. Lawrence, who has been out of the public eye for a while and is currently pregnant, was able to keep the conversation light and funny, but by the end DiCaprio was very focused on expressing his concerns for the future of the world. It’s clear both he and McKay hope this film, which has some very strong comedy and satire in it, will make this issue more accessible for those who may not be paying attention.

But that wasn’t the only big event going on in L.A. last night. House of Gucci held a splashy premiere at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures with director Ridley Scott and the stars of the film. It was the most recent stop in Lady Gaga’s world tour for the film over the past week, with stops in Milan (Saturday) and New York (Tuesday). It’s safe to say she’s the most likely from the cast to earn a nomination for her performance in a film that’s still a question mark in the race. And as we saw with the A Star Is Born promotional tour, she’s willing to put in the time when promoting a movie.

Also in Westwood, Being the Ricardos had its first official screening this week, followed by a Q&A with director-writer Aaron Sorkin and much of the cast. Much of the social media buzz from the screening seemed to be quite favorable. From those I’ve spoken with, the fact that the film is centered on the making of a TV show plays well to an industry audience and most very much enjoyed Nicole Kidman’s performance as Lucille Ball. And on Tuesday, A24 hosted a special screening of C’mon C’mon at the Fine Arts Theater with director Mike Mills and some of the cast present, with an afterparty at the Phoenix (of no relation to the film’s star, Joaquin).

On Sunday night, AFI Fest wrapped up in Los Angeles with the closing-night film, King Richard. Opening in theaters and HBO Max today, it has been considered a front-runner for Oscar nominations—especially picture and actor for Will Smith—since its debut at Telluride. Their buzzy event at AFI Fest seems to have only helped their case. Not only did they have an A-lister like Will Smith (whose family attended with him), but the subjects of the film, Venus and Serena Williams, also attended—as I’ve often said, having stars that come from another field is always a big hit with a Hollywood crowd.

And things won’t slow down until Thanksgiving. This weekend, there’s a concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall called Reel Change: Nicholas Britell, which will feature the live premiere selection of Britell’s score for Don’t Look Up, and Licorice Pizza will also host its Los Angeles premiere on Saturday night. For the next few weeks, Awards Insider’s social calendar is going to be very full, and that’s just the way we like it.