I was just yet again grossed out by this statement by an Academy member as quoted by the Hollywood-Reporter’s Tim Appelo. Regarding the Melissa Leo FYC ad, a member reportedly said:
“She lost my vote.”
Wow, really? So that is how you win an Oscar. Huh. Here all this time I thought it had to do with the actual performance! Silly me. Actually, of course I’ve always known that you don’t win Oscars by giving the best performance of the year – you win them by either 1) being most liked by your peers, 2) playing a character most liked by your peers. Every once in a while a deserving performer gets it.
Leo has a refreshing newbie taste on the race:
“The race, all this is sorta unfamiliar to me,” Leo told The Hollywood Reporter. “But it might mean more work, so that’s interesting. The Oscars — it’s this illustrious group, a jury of my peers, I find out. It’s also a marketing [thing]. It’s show business. I didn’t ask that this opportunity for more come to me. I’ve just done what I’ve done. I think I’m finding out why I watch those competitive cooking shows, ’cause people aren’t on about who they are or how they’re dressed. It’s about what they’re doing.”
Just to state one more time for the record: everybody campaigns for the Oscar. Only they don’t do it directly the way she did. They do it hiding behind very powerful and skilled publicists. Notice how when David Lynch does it it’s considered funny and quirky but for Leo? A 50 year old fighting to continue to get access to interesting roles? She’s an embarrassment. I’m not saying she deserves to win or not; what I am saying is that she doesn’t deserve to NOT get it because of this.
For the record? David Lynch rules. And Laura Dern was robbed.
