Studios typically determine in which categories to submit their actors for when it comes to awards, and in a reversal of previous plans, the cast of Platinum Dunes’ ‘A Quiet Place’ will all be competing as Supporting Actors and Actresses. Rather than submitting stars John Krasinski (who also directed) and Emily Blunt as Lead Actor and Actress, they will be competing as Supporting Actor and Actress, along with the performers that played their kids, Noah Jupe and Millicent Simmonds.
Though no one would confirm it, the change appears to be for the benefit of Blunt. ‘A Quiet Place’ came out on April 6. Since then, many other “showier,” more awards-baiting films have come out, with more on the way. It seems her chances would have been slim to earn a nomination for Lead Actress for a movie that came out so long ago and isn’t as flashy as other performances. And then there’s ‘Mary Poppins Returns’, a movie that has been warmly embraced by those that have already seen it, some of whom have declared it the best movie of the year. Had Blunt been presented for Lead Actress for ‘A Quiet Place’and ‘Mary Poppins Returns’, that could have split the vote, with her not getting nominated for either. This way, she may very well get nominated for both Lead Actress for ‘Mary Poppins Returns’ and Supporting Actress for ‘A Quiet Place’.
In 1963, Julie Andrews won the Best Actress Academy Award for the original ‘Mary Poppins’.
Lionsgate employed a similar strategy with its 2005 ensemble film ‘Crash’, which won Best Picture. Unfortunately, of that cast, only Matt Damon earned a nomination for Supporting Actor. The strategy worked for Alan Arkin, however, in 2006, when he was nominated for the ensemble picture ‘Little Miss Sunshine’. Arkin won, but his costar Abigail Breslin was only nominated. Mahershala Ali also won for Best Supporting Actor for 2016’s ‘Moonlight’, while his costar Naomie Harris also earned a nomination.
But it remains to be seen how the voting bodies of the various upcoming awards will react. While some expect that Blunt will get a Lead Actress Golden Globe nomination for ‘Mary Poppins Returns’, they find it harder to image that the more serious-minded Academy Awards will honor such a performance in such a light family picture.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
