Best Supporting Actor: Williem Dafoe

By Elliot Kronsberg

The last time the Academy nominated two actors from the same film for best supporting actor was 1992, when Harvey Keitel and Ben Kingsley garnered nominations for Bugsy, but lost to Jack Palance. This year, the Academy nominated Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, and, in all likelihood, Rockwell will win. I have nothing against either Rockwell or Harrelson. I actually enjoy their acting and am surprised that neither have won an Oscar before. However, neither man should win the award this year. Why should we reward a film that, whether intentionally or unintentionally, seeks to redeem a violently racist cop? Admittedly, I am a little unsure why either actor was nominated for this film, but the fact that Rockwell has a very good chance at winning is baffling to me. Maybe I just do not understand the Academy Awards.

I definitely do not understand why the Academy nominated neither supporting actor from Call Me By Your Name, despite the fact that Michael Stuhlbarg’s speech at the end of the film almost made me cry. Stuhlbarg appears in three of this year’s best picture nominees, and despite consistently delivering award-worthy performances, he has never even been nominated for an Emmy or an Academy Award. And Armie Hammer tends to have spotty judgment in his film choices, but at least he is able to translate his insane likeability into complex characters.

On March 4, it is more than likely that I will be disappointed by the Academy’s choice for best supporting actor, but I am holding out hope that they will prove me wrong and give the award to Willem Dafoe for his performance in The Florida Project for being a bastion of hope not only within the movie, but also in an industry so obsessed with always coming out on top. Whether he is playing an evil millionaire/supervillain in Spider-Man or a cranky first mate in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Willem Dafoe has never been afraid of the audience hating him. If only Sam Rockwell lived by that same attitude, I would feel much more comfortable with his almost-inevitable win.