With her recent win at the BAFTA Awards, Viola Davis continued steamrolling the competition on what looks like an unstoppable path to Oscar victory. Davis, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actress in “Fences,” has been so dominant throughout award season that a loss for her at the Academy Awards would not only be the most jaw-dropping upset of the night, but statistically unheard of. Vote in our poll below about whether Davis is your personal pick to prevail on Oscar night.
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Her latest accolade puts her in a rare class of women who have won the Best Supporting Actress award at each of the four major precursors: Critics’ Choice, Golden Globes, SAG and BAFTA. Every one of them went on to take home the Oscar. To date, this feat has occurred six times: Renee Zellweger (“Cold Mountain” in 2003), Jennifer Hudson (“Dreamgirls” in 2006), Mo’Nique (“Precious” in 2009), Octavia Spencer (“The Help” in 2011), Anne Hathaway (“Les Miserables” in 2012) and Patricia Arquette (“Boyhood” in 2014).
Had any of the other nominees in this category stolen just one of these major prizes, we could at least have a conversation about a potential upset on Oscar night. But for Davis, the competition has remained nearly the same throughout awards season and she has always come out victorious. Fellow nominees Naomie Harris (“Moonlight”), Nicole Kidman (“Lion”) and Michelle Williams (“Manchester by the Sea”) were all up against Davis at each of these award ceremonies. Octavia Spencer (“Hidden Figures”) was snubbed by Critics’ Choice and BAFTA, but was among the field at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards.
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History of Academy Award winning films
This isn’t the first time Davis has entered the Oscars as a frontrunner, though. In 2011 she was favored to win Best Actress for “The Help,” but went on to lose to Meryl Streep for “The Iron Lady.” That year, however, Davis and Streep had split the precursor awards with Davis winning Critics’ Choice and SAG, while Streep took home the Golden Globe and BAFTA. With her undefeated record this year, Davis appears to be on a clear path to finally get her Oscar.
Predict the Oscar winners now; change them till February 26
Be sure to make your Oscar predictions. Weigh in now with your picks so that Hollywood insiders can see how their films are faring in our Oscar odds. You can keep changing your predictions right up until just before winners are announced on February 26 at 5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET. And join in the fierce debate over the Oscars taking place right now with Hollywood insiders in our forums.
