There’s no arguing that Leonardo DiCaprio gave a fearless and memorable performance in “The Revenant”. And voters may truly believe that Leo legitimately delivered the finest Lead Actor work of 2015. But, let’s be honest, much of the attention and hardware Leo collected throughout Awards Season, culminating with his first Oscar win, was due to his likability and past history in these annual talent competitions and not for his ability to succeed in getting attacked by a guy in a bear suit.
At 41, DiCaprio isn’t the first actor, but he may just be the youngest, ever to receive the “career achievement sympathy vote” from The Academy. Typically you have to be twice his age (e.g. Christopher Plummer, at 82, taking Best Supporting Actor for the 2011 indie “Beginners”) to earn such an honor.
Interestingly, Amy Adams (also 41) has been nominated five times for acting, but over a nine-year period compared to DiCaprio’s 22-year run. Her last Academy Award nomination (first in the Lead Actress category) for 2013’s “American Hustle” could’ve resulted in victory, since she had captured both the Actress in a Comedy Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award that year, and she was the only nominee in the category without a statue to her name. A few more weeks of campaigning and Adams might’ve been able to beat-out Cate Blanchett (“Blue Jasmine”). Her role as Lois Lane in “Batman v. Superman” certainly won’t be sending Adams back to The Oscars next Feb. The sci-fi film “Story of Your Life” and drama “Nocturnal Animals” may provide better shots to snap her losing streak, though both are currently without release dates.
Truth is, there’s a star-studded list of Hollywood legends who have not yet been able to add “Academy Award Winner” to their resumes. I’m sure three-time nominee Tom Cruise would love an Oscar, but he seems more focused on action blockbusters these days than awards contenders. Six-time nominee Glenn Close has several comedies in the pipeline, along with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”. I don’t see here drought ending anytime soon. And for direct comparisons to Leo, how about this list of actors who have struck-out for acting: Brad Pitt (0-3), Matt Damon (0-3), Joaquin Phoenix (0-3), Johnny Depp (0-3) and Bradley Cooper (0-3). And it’s truly amazing that Harrison Ford, Samuel L. Jackson and Liam Neeson each have only been nominated one time during their incredible careers, with no wins between them.
For me DiCaprio’s Oscar and overall Awards Season domination was due to a combination of a) his charm shown throughout the industry b) the over-hyped and over-dramatized “difficult shoot” campaign, and c) the fact that he had never experienced the glory of taking the top prize. And yes, I admit this comes from someone who felt Eddie Redmayne deserved to win his second Oscar in a row.