Daniel Day-Lewis is returning to our cinemas. Given that his films are few and far between (his last was “Lincoln” in 2012, for which he won his third Best Actor Oscar), this is a big news. What’s even more exciting is that said film will be the next from cinema-auteur and six-time Oscar- nominee Paul Thomas-Anderson. His last movie was “Inherent Vice” for which he reaped a Best Adapted Screenplay bid. Actor and director first collaborated in 2007 on “There Will Be Blood,” which won Day-Lewis his second Oscar for an iconic performance. (His first was in 1989 for “My Left Foot.”)
Oscars: Every Best Actor Winner in Academy History (Photo Gallery)
With these two filmmaking heavyweights working together again, we can expect an awards tour de force with this next project, which remains untitled for now. The official IMDB synopsis says: Set in the fashion world of 1950s London, a dressmaker is commissioned to design for members of high society and the royal family.
Think of it: a period film, which will be the fourth in a row for Anderson, set in London and revolving around the fashion industry. Sounds like a mash-up of “The Devil Wears Prada” and “The Crown.” If the film lives up to the undoubtable hype, it could contend in the creative categories of costume and production design and make-up and hair as well as the marquee above-the-line races.
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Luxembourg-born actress Vicky Krieps, who starred in “Hanna” and “A Most Wanted Man,” just joined the cast as did critics darling Lesley Manville who was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress BAFTA for “Another Year.”
News just broke that Jack Nicholson has been cast in a remake of the German-language Oscar contender “Toni Erdmann” remake. So, we could well be in store for another Best Actor battle between Day-Lewis and Nicholson. Back in 2003, Day-Lewis (“Gangs of New York”) and Nicholson (“About Schmidt”) won several key precursors each but they both ended up losing the Oscar to “The Pianist” star Adrien Brody.
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Day-Lewis is the only three-time Best Actor champ while one of Nicholson’s three Oscars is in supporting (“Terms of Endearment,” 1983). Nicholson netted a trio of Academy Awards (his Best Actor wins were for “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” in 1975 and “As Good As It Gets” in 1997) from a dozen bids.
Compare that to the staggering success rate for Day-Lewis who has gone three for five (besides “Gangs of New York,” his only other loss came in 1993 for “In the Name of the Father” when Tom Hanks won for “Philadelphia.”) The actor could be the good luck charm that finally wins an Oscar for Anderson who has raked up six losses, including three for “There Will Be Blood” (Director, Picture and Adapted Screenplay).
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