Academy launches probe after Andrea Riseborough’s surprise Oscars nomination for To Leslie
- The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said it is conducting a review of the campaign procedures around this year’s nominees to ‘ensure that no guidelines were violated’
- Best Actress nominee Riseborough, who plays a Texas single mother struggling with alcoholism, beat out presumed front runners Viola Davis and Danielle Deadwyler
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said on Friday it was launching a review of Oscars campaigning, days after a small indie film surprised industry-watchers with a shock nomination to Hollywood’s most prestigious awards.
To Leslie had taken just US$27,000 at the box office when star Andrea Riseborough’s name appeared on the shortlist of nominees for Best Actress.
Riseborough, who plays a Texas single mother struggling with alcoholism, beat out presumed front runners Viola Davis (The Woman King) and Danielle Deadwyler (Till).
The nod came after an intense, last-minute social media campaign mounted on her behalf by celebrity friends including Edward Norton, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Sarah Paulson.
Movie industry magazine Variety said the Academy had received multiple calls and emails in the wake of the nomination, and there was a raging debate among moviemakers over whether rules had been broken.