The actor sat down with Casting Networks via video call to share the eventful casting story that led to her playing the humanitarian/entrepreneur/visionary that was Francesca Cabrini in Alejandro Monteverde’s biopic about the first American saint.

From casting director Denise Chamian championing the actor to Dell’Anna pulling off her third self tape without a reader, you can catch all these insights and more in this on-camera installment of My Casting Story.

This video interview has been edited and condensed.

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The post Cristiana Dell’Anna Shares How Martin Scorsese and Three Self Tapes Helped Her Land the Starring Role in ‘Cabrini’ first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Cristiana Dell’Anna Shares How Martin Scorsese and Three Self Tapes Helped Her Land the Starring Role in ‘Cabrini’ appeared first on Casting Networks.

This year, Zarkesh bagged the 2023 AACTA Award for Best Casting in Film for Shayda. Here, she shares what drew her to the award-winning film, some thoughts on her career longevity and more.

Congratulations on your AACTA win for Shayda. Can you recall what initially drew you to this project?

I was drawn to the project by Noora Niasari’s beautiful script about a single mother/daughter relationship and its important themes around domestic violence and gender power politics, as well as my relationship with the producer Vincent Sheehan. It was Noora’s first feature film, and she was very passionate about telling her very personal story. I loved the fact we were both Iranian women and had similar childhoods being raised by single mothers.

You’ve been in the casting game for almost three decades now. Did Shayda present any unique challenges?

Yes, it was challenging on many levels. We were casting Shayda during COVID-19. Noora lives in Melbourne, and I’m in Sydney, [so] lots of Zoom and phone meetings! We also had a fairly low budget, so traveling around or testing lots of people was difficult. Additionally, the film features Iranian characters who had to speak Farsi fluently and with authentic Iranian accents, [which required] lots of research into the Iranian performance world and uncovering many “non-actors” or actors with little experience.

Although I’m Iranian, I don’t speak Farsi, so Noora interpreted where she could. We had to translate lots of flyers and emails into Persian—especially [while] seeking Farsi-speaking little girls to play Shayda. We did a national search for many months.

Photo courtesy of Anousha Zarkesh

The consistency throughout your career is remarkable. What might friends or colleagues say is the secret to your success?

I have no idea. I know I’m curious, tenacious, energetic and passionate about actors’ performances and the stories we are telling. I try to facilitate the director’s vision at all costs and work hard to find the “right” performers for each project. I still get a buzz putting a cast together and working collaboratively with the director and producer.

I use my gut instinct most of the time. I still care and love what I do. On each project, I question each casting decision and have some sleepless nights: Does it feel right tonally? Do the actors work together well? Do I believe it? What are we trying to say? Do these actors work well together as an ensemble?

There are obviously a lot of moving parts in the casting process, but can you point to any traits or qualities that make you root for certain actors?

Australia has produced some extraordinary actors over the years [who are now] working globally and consistently doing great work. They are hardworking, intelligent, funny and self-deprecating—a pleasure to have on any production.

I have, in the past, and do, root for lots of actors. When I see how hard they work or how “right” they are for a role, I will certainly push hard for that actor to get the role. Some actors have gravitas, some actors have heart and vulnerability, some actors have enormous sex appeal, some are powerful, some are just consistently funny and can interpret any script wittily and some actors can do it ALL!

Acting is so subjective. I suppose I like what I like and, again, instinctively, I [will] feel one actor’s performance over another’s stands out and is right for the role or specific TV show or film I’m casting.

Photo via Sony Pictures Classics.

Our industry has evolved significantly since you gave Isla Fisher, Melissa George and Ryan Kwanten their breaks as teenagers on Home and Away. Where do you advise aspiring actors to start in today’s world?

There’s a lot more content and opportunities for actors to shine now. It’s overwhelming at times—everyone can pick up a camera or iPhone and shoot footage, make short films or web series or create new comedy characters that may go viral. Some do it the old-fashioned way by getting a role on Home and Away or Neighbours.

Either way, there are lots of ways to practice your craft and be seen. I think you can self-create, self-promote and work all the time if you want it badly. The industry will eventually find you if you are good.

The Academy Awards recently announced there will be an award for Best Casting Director starting in 2026 [for 2025 films]. What did that news mean to you?

It’s great news for all the US casting directors who have been seeking recognition for years. They have been lobbying the Academy for a long time, so it’s great that they are finally being recognized for their contribution to film and TV.

As VP of the CGA, Thea McLeod and I have been having lots of discussions with casting directors in Europe and the US, hoping to support them in gaining acknowledgement. [I’m] so happy it’s happened.

Photo via Sony Pictures Classics.

Finally, what have you watched and loved lately? Any must-see recommendations for us?

I’ve been watching a lot of Aussie shows: Total Control, The Clearing, Boy Swallows Universe, Prosper, House of Gods and looking back at old episodes of Rake. They are still fantastic.

I love a good documentary and am a bit of an ABC news junkie. Or I will binge episodes of Arrested Development or Curb Your Enthusiasm to send me off to sleep!

Special thanks to Zarkesh for her time, and congratulations to all of the 2024 AACTA winners and nominees!

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The post Casting Director Anousha Zarkesh Discusses Her AACTA Win for ‘Shayda,’ Casting Directors Finally Receiving an Oscar Category appeared first on Casting Networks.

Cowles took time to share her stories on getting booked in Andy Grammer’s Damn It Feels Good To Be Me music video and working with Lady Gaga in Joker: Folie à Deux—where she got upgraded to a principal role and had a moment with the pop icon.

How did you decide to become an actor?

I did community theater for about four years here in Pasadena, California. One of the directors at the theater said, “You should start doing background.” So I did that right out of high school.

How did you first discover Casting Networks?

That’s actually a great question. I’m guessing it was because of the first agent I had back in 2010. I’m sure they’re the ones that said, “You should get on it.”

Tell me about your experiences booking the Andy Grammer video, Damn It Feels Good To Be Me, as well as going from background to principal in Joker: Folie à Deux. What was the process for each?

I would say for the music video … my agent sent me the audition through Casting Networks and the audition was [for] us to sing to one of his songs, but mouth it. They sent it off to casting, and I think it was like three or four days later [when] I heard back from them.

On the day of set, it was the song we danced to, and it was really fun because there were like 20 of us on-set. Andy Grammer and his wife were on-set in the same video, so they hung out with us and it was like one big happy family.

For the Joker sequel, we got a call from casting, and I think they found us on Casting Networks. They didn’t tell us that half. We got an email that says, “Hey, we have this movie called…” It was under the name Juliet instead of Joker to start with. They’re like, “We have a nine-day filming thing if you guys want to submit. You guys would be playing mental patients in music therapy class, and I think you guys would be great at it and it’s going to be smoke and all that fun stuff.” I wrote back and said, “Yeah, I’m in, but just not a lot of smoke.”

We started out as backgrounds in music therapy class, then the ADs came out on the first day we worked and said, “Change of plans, they’re actually going to record you guys with the earpieces in your ears.” We [got upgraded and] became principals the first day we worked on it. They had us record three different songs—all Judy Garland songs—and Lady Gaga is with us in the same class.

That was awesome. She hung around us the entire time. Then the best part—I think it was the fourth day out of nine days of being principal—I don’t think the director told her to do any of this, but I’m sitting here and she’s sitting there and she gets up, sings her song and we’re all standing and she comes over and hugs and kisses me while she’s singing her song.

She went by the name Stefani instead of Gaga. How she worded it was, “If it was Gaga, no one would pay attention to me and no one would talk to me.” Once she said “My name is Stefani,” everyone was talking to her. She participated in everything. It was just herself.

That’s awesome. What would you say helps someone succeed on Casting Networks?

I would say to be truthful in what you actually look like, and if you have any special abilities, be very truthful about those so you don’t get booked on something that you don’t know how to do. And always be on time to the auditions, even if it’s a self tape, or an in-person.

Photo courtesy of Heather Cowles.

What are some other high-profile jobs that you’ve booked off of Casting Networks?

One was for HomeAway.com. It was a print job back in 2015. That was in-person. I think I was booked the day after the audition—I played Waving Girl. It was those three things on Casting Networks, and two commercials [both for Skittles] on Casting Frontier.

What’s some audition advice you can share?

Show up on time. Don’t be playing on your cell phone if you’re that person. Always listen when you’re in the room when they’re telling you directions, and don’t be scared if you don’t get the script right away. You’re looking at one of the boards they write all the lines on, so don’t be scared at first if you can’t figure all that out.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Did you book a role through Casting Networks? Tell us about it for a chance to be featured in an upcoming article.

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• Elizabeth Tan Discusses Her Role in Netflix’s ‘Irish Wish’ and the Importance of Telling the Character’s Story

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The post Success Story: How Heather Cowles Booked an Andy Grammer Music Video and Got Upgraded to a Principal Role on ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ appeared first on Casting Networks.

Tan has brought that winning charm to hit British shows like Top Boy and Death in Paradise, as well as the Netflix series Emily in Paris. But her biggest role yet is in the new Netflix movie Irish Wish, premiering March 15.

The film stars Lindsay Lohan as a book editor who sees the love of her life get engaged to her best friend. Tan plays Emma, the best friend in question, and steals every scene she’s in. She talked to us from her home in London.

How did you get into acting?

I think I’ve always been a bit of a performer at home. I’ve always tried to do things to entertain people. It wasn’t really attention-seeking, I think I really wanted to engage with people. Even now, I’m not thinking, “I’m doing another press interview.” I’m like, “Oh my gosh, I’m gonna meet another person!” I think I’ve always had that curiosity about people and wanting to engage and be interested.

I realized from a young age there were things I could do [such as] impersonations and cute little character voices that would bring a smile to my mum and dad’s faces, and I got really hooked on it. The fact that you could do something that was maybe a different character, not really yourself, or telling a story. To me, that was just pure magic, and I thought, “Well, you can do the profession.” Now, as an adult, I see there’s a lot more to it than that. You’re not just entertaining and lighting people up, you’re also holding up that mirror, which is so important. As you know, I’m very curious …

I hadn’t caught that.

(Laughs) But I think you can get a lot of insights through film television and theatre. Actors are so key in that part, holding up that mirror and making people understand. Through the arts, we all get a greater understanding of our humanity. You can see how people get affected by stories, so I’m just incredibly passionate and I feel so fortunate that I get to do this as a living.

I talk to a lot of actors, and I think most of them share an innate curiosity with journalists. In both cases, it’s asking a lot of questions.

Yes! That is absolutely the heart of that empathy because in order to understand how someone ticks, you’ve got to understand where they’re coming from. Like, that person did this awful thing, but if you’re embodying that person, you’re going to show why they’re doing it and people are going to have a greater level of understanding of what they’re going through, rather than being judgmental.

Even if you’re playing somebody who’s inherently evil, or just a villainous character, you’re still doing something in a way you want to show the audience that, in this person’s mind. they’re doing the right thing.

Absolutely. Just by inhabiting that character, you’re showing another story that you might not otherwise see. You might not know somebody who has MS and is dealing with it, but if you watch a movie about someone with it, you immediately start to understand what they’re going through.

Going back to the villainous thing, my next role is playing someone who’s a killer. I usually play quite sweet, but everyone has their own point of view, so I really need to get into that headspace. Why are they doing that? And how did they justify it to themselves? Because I don’t think people who are doing those things, a lot of the time, they don’t think they’re doing anything bad. They’re really just doing what they believe. If you can embody that —and this is the beauty of being an actor— if you can embody that and make it sympathetic, create empathy with the audience, that’s very powerful.

The character you play in Irish Wish is sort of an interesting embodiment of what we’re talking about because she’s not a villain. And yet, there’s a bad guy aspect to her because even though she does nothing wrong, she’s still taking the love of the main character’s life.

When I took on the role, I was saying to myself, the Lindsay Lohan fans are gonna hate this character because she’s in the way. You’ve got an actor who’s got a very strong following, and you can’t help it because, again, the way this medium works is that a lot of time people are following the actor. So, I played her quite vulnerable because when you watch a character be vulnerable, it’s hard to hate them. Vulnerability is one of the key things as an actor that you need to bring in. There’s such a sincerity about Emma.

It’s interesting that, after the titular wish happens, and Emma is on the outside, you can see how much pain she’s in, so it’s genuinely impossible to root against her. That the love she feels is even bigger than magic.

I love that. That is actually, in my opinion, one of the themes of the show: what’s meant to be is meant to be. It’s like being an actor. Even if you think, “Oh, I can’t be an actor, because I can’t move or be able to make enough money or whatever it is.” I went through that. But at the end of the day, it still draws you in and I’m so happy doing it. I think a lot of times we try to overthink things or we meddle in our own affairs, much more than we need to. I mean, if you’re passionate about something, pursue it.

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The post Elizabeth Tan Discusses Her Role in Netflix’s ‘Irish Wish’ and the Importance of Telling the Character’s Story appeared first on Casting Networks.

Thanks to all the recent awards shows and events occurring before Oscar night, it seems like a lot of these Oscar races are foregone conclusions by the time we get to the actual ceremony. However, that’s not the case this year, as I have discussed over the last few days. Honestly, I think Da’Vine Joy Randolph is the only sure thing, though I would be genuinely shocked if Robert Downey Jr. doesn’t also win.

Meanwhile, in the Best Actor race, it is a real toss-up between the two frontrunners. So without any further delay, let’s name the nominees. They are: Cillian Murphy for Oppenheimer, Paul Giamatti for The Holdovers, Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction, Bradley Cooper for Maestro and Colman Domingo for Rustin.

First things first, as usual. I have long been a fan of both Jeffrey Wright and Colman Domingo, each of whom has earned his first Oscar nomination. Both are well deserved. Domingo gives a truly transcendent performance in a mediocre movie about the legendary activist, and it’s a pleasure to see him honored here. Wright, who is for my money the best James Gordon ever to appear on the big screen, is just as tremendous in writer-director Cord Jefferson’s winning satire. They both belong here, but neither one is going to win. Sometimes in these commentaries I talk about how a certain performance might win an award in any other year, but I honestly think that doesn’t apply to either of these men or their work. I think, as good as these performances are, they are good enough to be nominated in just about any given year, but never to win.

However, since both performances are this year, then the conversation becomes academic, and so we move on to Bradley Cooper. This is a special case. Maestro is the second film he has directed, and he has starred in both, each time directing himself to a Best Actor nomination. A few years ago, when he did it with A Star Is Born, he lost the Oscar to Rami Malek, playing Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. In the lead-up to that Oscar ceremony, I said that Malek was going to win and that he deserved it. As time has gone by, though, that judgment hasn’t aged well. Especially — and you might find this odd, but I will explain — after seeing Taron Egerton’s performance as Elton John in Rocketman. Both Egerton and Cooper sang their own songs, while Malek lip-synched his. Also, Cooper directed himself, which is not easy. Don’t get me wrong, Rami was terrific in the movie, but in retrospect, I think Brad was robbed.

This year, however, no hindsight will change the fact that, while he is as outstanding as Leonard Bernstein, it feels like he was absolutely begging the Academy to give him an Oscar. I believe that there’s a desperation to the movie that somehow taints it. Maybe it’s because so many people — myself included — feel like he chose to tell the wrong story, I don’t know, but while I enjoyed the film, it wasn’t as good as maybe it should have been. I know a lot of other people feel that way, too, which is one more reason why he won’t win this.

The two biggest reasons for Cooper’s loss are Cillian Murphy and Paul Giamatti, both of whom are off-the-charts brilliant in Oppenheimer and The Holdovers, respectively. These two are so good, it’s almost a shame they had to happen in the same year because they both deserve to win. Murphy transforms himself into the father of the atomic bomb, and no matter what I may think of the movie as a whole — I think it’s very good, but not great. I know I’m in the minority here, both about the film and Christopher Nolan, who I think is a fantastic filmmaker, while also being terribly overrated.

Murphy’s brilliance is undeniable, but the same can be said for Giamatti, who never seems to do anything that isn’t amazing. That’s certainly true here, as he takes a difficult character who verges on the supremely unlikable, and gives him heart and charisma, while also pulling off a genuine arc. The moment at the end of the movie in which his wall-eyed teacher tells his young charge which eye is the right one to look at does something that’s incredibly hard for an actor to pull off. The delivery is matter-of-fact, but the meaning behind it is so deep, without coming off as maudlin or cloying, it can bring tears to your eyes. It sure did to mine.

These two guys are in a real horse race. Murphy has been the frontrunner since his movie premiered in July, and while Giamatti has been in the race since he turned up on screens in October, his rise to challenge Murphy has happened slowly, a bit at a time, as more and more people saw The Holdovers and found themselves talking about Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Paul Giamatti and holy cow, were they phenomenal or what? As that’s happened, Giamatti has caught Murphy, and I dare say surged past him. The charming photo of Giamatti at an In-N-Out Burger after winning the Golden Globe can only help.

It really could go to either guy, but I don’t care that Murphy won the SAG award. I still think Giamatti pulls it out in the end. I won’t be devastated if he doesn’t, because Murphy will have earned it, but both my heart and my head say that the trophy goes home with Paul. Maybe even to In-N-Out Burger.

Who Should Win: Paul Giamatti
Who Will Win: Paul Giamatti

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The post Predicting the 96th Academy Awards Winners: Best Actor Category appeared first on Casting Networks.

As much as I loved her as and in Barbie, I don’t know who I would remove from the list of nominees in her stead. All five of them are more than deserving, and I refuse to play that game where I complain about someone not getting a nomination and then failing to say who should not have. You might recall that just a few weeks ago, I said Rachel Weisz deserved Lizzy Caplan’s Emmy nomination for Best Actress in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or TV Movie, and I have had a crush on Lizzy for over a decade. Empty talk is not my thing.

Let’s get into who the nominees are. They are: Lily Gladstone for Killers of the Flower Moon, Emma Stone for Poor Things, Carey Mulligan for Maestro, Annette Bening for Nyad and Sandra Hüller for Anatomy of a Fall.

Carey Mulligan is a phenomenally talented actress who has now earned three Oscar nominations, and I think she deserved to win three years ago over Frances McDormand, who won for Nomadland. What Mulligan did in Promising Young Woman was incredible, and it’s fair to say that she never gives anything but a spectacular performance. The same is true this year for what she did in Maestro, but that movie just never really measured up to the hype. And while she and her director and co-star Bradley Cooper (more about him tomorrow) both deserve their places here, neither is going to win.

Nor, for that matter, is Sandra Hüller, who I think is an amazing talent and I love seeing everything she does. Anatomy of a Fall is an outstanding film that is carried by her performance, and honestly, I think she’s the reason why Robbie isn’t on this list. Or possibly Annette Bening, who is simply astonishing as Diana Nyad in the Netflix film.

It’s not always easy to play a difficult, possibly unlikable character, but Bening nails it in an enormously watchable performance that, more than once, made me turn to my wife and say, “She’s just incredible. Isn’t she incredible?” If I had a vote, I think it would be for her, because she’s just so good. Bening’s been doing this for decades, has been nominated five times and deserved to win at least once (I would have given her the Oscar for her work in The Kids Are All Right over Natalie Portman in Black Swan). I think she deserves it again here, but like Hüller, I think her nomination is the reward.

About that comment regarding who took Robbie’s nomination, think about it. Mulligan was a lock from day one, as were the other two actresses I’m about to discuss, which means that for whatever reason, they went with the two esteemed veterans over Robbie. If you’re asking me how I would have voted, I’m honestly not sure. Emma Stone, Lily Gladstone, Mulligan and Bening for sure. That leaves Hüller.

I have to say, I think I give it to Hüller here, maybe by a whisker. The irony of Ryan Gosling’s nomination for playing Ken while Robbie wasn’t for playing Barbie is obvious, but that doesn’t mean Hüller doesn’t deserve to be here.

I will once again reference my policy noted above. Whose nomination would you take away so that Robbie could be here? I’m genuinely asking. If you feel strongly enough to talk about it, you can message me at @6wordreviews on Instagram. As long as you’re civil, I promise I’ll respond.

Now, to the two actresses who could actually win this. Stone and Gladstone.

We’ll discuss Gladstone first because she’s not in as much of her movie as the other nominees are in theirs. There is precedence in this very category, though, once again involving the great McDormand, who won it for Fargo 1997 despite only appearing in 36 minutes of a 98-minute movie. Her co-star, William H. Macy, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor despite appearing in 38 minutes. When you think of that film, who do you think of? Of course, you think of McDormand’s Marge, and the same is true of Killers. Gladstone is the heart and soul of the film. Even if she’s not in it as much as Leonardo DiCaprio or Robert De Niro, to call her performance anything other than a lead role is an insult.

Stone, of course, has a more conventional lead role in Poor Things, a terrific take on the Frankenstein story. It’s hard not to consider Emma Stone as one of the finest —if not the finest— actress of her generation. By the way, this is a generation that includes Carey Mulligan (Stone is 35, Mulligan is 38). Stone has been nominated for her acting four times (she has a Best Picture nod this year as well, as one of Poor Things’ producers), and I think we can all expect this to be far from the last time she and Mulligan square off in this category.

If all things were totally equal, I believe Stone would win this award. However, all things are not equal, which is why I don’t believe she will. In my mind, there are two very important factors working against her. The first is Gladstone potentially becoming the first Native American actress to win an Oscar. I think that will be a very hard thing for people to pass up and miss out on being a part of something special, even tangentially, by voting for her.

The other is a bit more sinister: jealousy. Honestly, I think that is just a big part of what will keep Stone from winning. I think the concept of an actress capturing this award twice before she turns 36 is too much for too many people in this town to handle. Will that keep her from ever winning again? No, but I do think it will keep her from winning this year, hence my conviction that Gladstone will make history instead.

Who Should Win: Annette Bening
Who Will Win: Lily Gladstone

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Not since Annie Hall won the Best Picture prize in 1977 has a comedy won it all, which is the same year the Best Actor trophy went to someone in a comedy (Richard Dreyfus for The Goodbye Girl).

So it’s a bit strange that female comedic performances, in both lead and supporting categories, tend to get their due, as do supporting male performances. It doesn’t happen often (thrice in the last dozen years in the Best Actress category —the same amount of wins in 26 years for Supporting Actress— and four times in the last 20 for Supporting Actor), but it does happen. People in the supporting categories tend to regularly show up from these other genres as well, up to and including last year, when Angela Bassett earned a nod for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Why am I talking about this? Well, let’s take a look at the nominees and all will become clear. They are: Mark Ruffalo for Poor Things, Robert De Niro for Killers of the Flower Moon, the aforementioned Robert Downey Jr. for Oppenheimer, Sterling K. Brown for American Fiction and Ryan Gosling for Barbie.

You’re up to speed now, right? Great. Let’s dive in. Ruffalo has been here before — most recently for Spotlight — and that’s only interesting because I think that he took a nomination from one of his co-stars in that movie, too. Taking nothing away from the actor’s work in either film, I thought Michael Keaton should have been nominated for the 2017 Best Picture winner, just as I was sort of stunned that Willem Dafoe didn’t get one this year for Poor Things. I don’t ultimately think that’s why he’s not going to win, but neither do I believe I’m alone in this belief.

Robert De Niro has had something of a renaissance lately. I was totally surprised he didn’t get a nod a few years back for The Irishman, but his work as a fiendishly evil oil man in Flowers is his best work in years, so it makes sense to me that the actors’ branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized him.

That said, I don’t think he’s winning this, either, nor for that matter is Sterling K. Brown, who is fantastic in American Fiction, in another comedic role. In most other years, just as I would put Jodie Foster in the pole position for Supporting Actress, I would do the same for what Brown does in Cord Jefferson’s terrific movie.

But this year, he’s against a juggernaut and a spoiler. The former is RDJ, the latter is Ryan Gosling. RDJ is a brilliant actor and it’s refreshing to see him show up here. Don’t get me wrong, I loved his Tony Stark (see above) and I enjoy his Sherlock Holmes, but did you know that aside from a cameo or two this is only the fourth major role he has had in the last 16 years that wasn’t either Iron Man or Sherlock?

It’s both rewarding and frustrating to see him be so good here because it reminds us not only how talented he is, but also what we’ve been missing for the last decade and a half. His work here in Oppenheimer is spectacular, and I think it’s sort of a foregone conclusion that he’s going to win this. Generally speaking, I’m fine with that and won’t be terribly upset about it, because he’s a talented and admired person and this will be as much a career reward as it is for this particular performance. Won’t be the first time that’s happened, won’t be the last.

As much as I love RDJ, and as much as I thought he was dynamite in Oppenheimer, I think Gosling deserves this a bit more. I mean, the degree of difficulty alone in playing Ken the way he did is daunting enough, but for him to pull it off?

Margot Robbie is amazing as Barbie, but Gosling steals every scene he’s in, which is saying something when one considers how much talent is around him. I like his overall oeuvre as much as the next person and love how consistently good he is, but this is a different level entirely. I wonder if this isn’t going to be a situation like the Best Actor race a couple of years ago, when Anthony Hopkins upset Chadwick Boseman because people kept saying, “Chadwick’s gonna win, but I’m voting for Sir Anthony.” Not saying that will happen this time, I’m saying it could.

Ultimately, I think it’s RDJ’s to lose. If anyone is going to pull an upset, it’s Gosling. That win would be well deserved.

Who Should Win: Ryan Gosling
Who Will Win: Robert Downey Jr.

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The post Predicting the 96th Academy Awards Winners: Best Supporting Actor Category first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Predicting the 96th Academy Awards Winners: Best Supporting Actor Category appeared first on Casting Networks.

TLDR: I’m back and I’m ready to make predictions.

The rules are the same as in past years. I will talk about each category and single out the performer who I believe deserves the award, then tell you who I think is going to win, as they are not always the same. This year there are at least two instances of this —though neither of them appears today— as we talk about the Best Supporting Actress division. So let’s get right to it and mention the nominees.

They are: America Ferrera for Barbie, Danielle Brooks for The Color Purple, Da’Vine Joy Randolph for The Holdovers, Emily Blunt for Oppenheimer and Jodie Foster for Nyad.

Danielle Brooks is a wonderful actress who is delightful in The Color Purple, but her nomination is her award, especially since she is the only one from this much-anticipated movie whose name appears in this year’s tally of nominees.

Similarly, while I adore America Ferrera as an actress (and think she is terrific in Barbie), she is essentially nominated for a single monologue at the end of the movie. Her inclusion here was one of the biggest surprises of Nomination Day, so that alone should tell you something. Honestly, with all the hubbub of Margot Robbie not being nominated for Best Actress (more about that later), if she had been given The Monologue, it would be academic.

Ferrera’s nomination didn’t perplex me like Emily Blunt’s did. I’m a big fan of hers, too (okay, I am a big fan of all 20 nominees, and let’s stipulate that any criticism I might make is about the movie in which they appear and not them personally), but was sort of stunned that she has received as much awards season love as she has. Her role in Oppenheimer as Mrs. Oppenheimer is sort of a nothing part with one big scene at the end, which, like, Ferrera, is probably the reason why she’s here.

One of my big complaints about any Christopher Nolan film is how poorly he writes women, and Blunt’s character is no exception. Now that I think about it, the fact that she was able to do as much as she did without much to work with is probably why people have been so generous with the nominations this winter. This makes more sense to me.

I was thrilled that Jodie Foster earned a nod for Nyad, one of my favorite movies of the year. I actually wasn’t sure enough people would recognize her for a performance that was not nearly as flashy as the others, and was opposite powerhouse work by lead actress Annette Bening (again, we’ll come back to her in a couple of days). Foster never does anything but great work, but this is still the first time she’s been nominated in 29 years.

Like Tom Hanks, Foster is so consistently excellent that she rarely gets recognition for it. But her work in Nyad is the calming presence the movie needs, and she shines as brightly as Bening does. In most years, I would be firmly on Team Jodie to take home her third such trophy.

But this is not that year, because it is Da’Vine Joy Randolph’s year. Have you seen The Holdovers? If it’s not my favorite movie this year, it’s in the top three, and she’s a big part of the reason why.

Randolph, who is so hilarious as a profane NYPD detective on Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, is simply transcendent here as a mourning mother who finds herself in an unlikely trio of abandoned people at a prep school in 1970s Massachusetts. She is funny, she’s heartbreaking and she ably rides that delicate balance of never becoming maudlin or melodramatic. It’s a career-defining role that blew my mind and made me certain that she will take this thing for a walk.

Who Should Win: Da’Vine Joy Randolph
Who Will Win: Da’Vine Joy Randolph

The 2024 Oscars takes place on March 10 at 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET on ABC.

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The post Predicting the 96th Academy Awards Winners: Best Supporting Actress Category first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Predicting the 96th Academy Awards Winners: Best Supporting Actress Category appeared first on Casting Networks.

His son Mario first hit it big in Clint Eastwood’s 1986 hit film Heartbreak Ridge, found more success as an actor and turned that into his own filmmaking success, both in the studio system — with movies like New Jack City and Panther (written by his dad!) — and out. His son, Mandela, has followed in their footsteps, becoming a successful actor in his own right. Melvin died in 2021 at the age of 89, but his progeny are still making movies, often together. Mario wrote and directed the fun new western Outlaw Posse, in theaters March 1, in which both he and Mandela also star. The two of them sat down with us from Los Angeles.

This is not your first western. You’ve done this a few times before.

Mario: Not my first rodeo, no. (Laughs)

Where did the idea for this come from?

Mario: My big break was a film called Heartbreak Ridge with Clint Eastwood, and we talked about the history of the West. He’d done a series of Sergio Leone spaghetti westerns, of course, and Gunsmoke and we talked about almost one out of three cowboys being black. You saw that dynamic in Unforgiven, you know, he put Morgan Freeman in there. Of the first 44 settlers of Los Angeles, I think 26 were Black. The name cowboy, they called Black men boys as a derogatory term.

When Hollywood started to glorify cowboys, you got white actors suddenly being cast as cowboys. Even as Native Americans, white guys would play those. In the early Westerns, if you saw an Asian person, they were sort of Hop Sing, the differential houseboy. Mexicans, it was like, the oily bandit that don’t need no stinking badges. The only good Indian was a dead Indian and women were pale and frail and needed rescuing. So people of color were sort of marginalized as depicted in the early West.

So you wanted to tell a Western story we weren’t used to?

Mario: Part of what I wanted to do was not take our country back, but take the history back of how diverse the West really was. Dr. King has a great line where he says, “We either learn to live together in harmony or perish together as brothers and sisters as fools.” We were all there, so we have to see that history to understand. This is the funner place to do it. Can we entertain and have a lot of fun in the West? Maybe give a little entertainment, too?

Mandela, your dad and your grandfather both have strong activist streaks in their work, and I’m curious about your experience growing up in that atmosphere.

Mandela: The social justice aspect of filmmaking went deep with the Van Peebles, for sure. Everything we have is based around the Blaxploitation era and the injustice involved with that, and Melvin eventually just saying, enough is enough, I want to tell my story. I think that’s great. I think that one of the beauties of working in media is through entertainment and the guise of storytelling, you can affect real-life change in the real world. I think, although this is set in the West, the issues we’re tackling and discussing are very much so still relevant today.

Mandela, did you ever have a moment where you told your dad, “I don’t want to go into the family business,” and your dad said, “No, like it or not, you’re in. Your grandfather did it, I did it, you’re doing it?”

Mario: (laughs)

Mandela: Quite the opposite. I was never a huge fan of being a student, but he was definitely pretty encouraging about going to college and having a Plan A. Really, for me, that was always going to be Plan B, having a backup plan that had nothing to do with the family business. But yeah, my calling was definitely on the creative side of things. Growing up watching this guy making a living and supporting all of us, getting to bring us along. We’ve been all over the place, and being a part of that lifestyle from a young age, I knew it’d be hard for me to have a regular job.

Mario, do you make him audition?

Mario: Yes and no. He’s been auditioning for years, he just didn’t know it. I’ve seen him grow significantly as an actor. He has a show called Reginald the Vampire that he’s on, and he’s really great in that. And then he was on the Taylor Sheridan show Mayor of Kingstown. I’ve seen him as an actor growing to now bring him in. Look, my dad gave me my first lines in a feature film ever, and I gave him his last lines in a feature film ever. That doesn’t happen every day. My daughter Morgana is an actress, too. I guess we’re like The Jacksons without the musical talent.

This is not the first time you guys have worked together. What’s that dynamic like not just father and son, but director and actor?

Mario: I think I’m actually more user-friendly than my dad was. [To Mandela] He was a little more mellow when you got to know him, but to get shit done in my dad’s time period, you had to go in there with more direct force. I’ve been able to navigate things a little more diplomatically, but that’s only because he made a hole so I could travel that path. But our dynamic is one of love. We have different colors that we tune into. If we disagree as father and son, we’ll still not disagree as filmmaker and actor. So there’s a lot of trust and understanding of each other and how we move as a team.

You two have a scene before the film’s climax, where Mario’s Chief has a moment with Decker, his son, basically telling him to live his life, and that he’s proud of him. It’s a powerful moment. And while I’ve seen that moment on film before, I don’t remember seeing it between an actual father and son on screen. What was that like, playing that scene together?

Mario: A lot of people who’ve had a troubled relationship with their fathers look at that scene, and it really hits them where they say, I wish I had gotten to have that. I had it with my dad where he got to say, look, I may not know everything, but I’m trying to give you what I believe you will be able to use and if I’m wrong, I’m wrong. But if I’m right 80% of the time, you can win 80% of the time and add to it. Don’t take my bad, take my good. Any good in me, take my good.

Mandela: I think what we’ve been lucky enough to do for a profession, this world of acting and playing make-believe, is very therapeutic. And whether it’s exactly issues we’ve had or not, you can bring feelings and emotions and even thoughts and agency from other aspects or other things you’ve lived through into the scene. I think it’s really beneficial that we’ve worked together before, and also spent so much time as father and son, playing father and son. It gives you a lot of ground to work with, and a lot of room to play with.

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The post Mario and Mandela Van Peebles on Being a Dynamic Father and Son Duo in ‘Outlaw Posse’ first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Mario and Mandela Van Peebles on Being a Dynamic Father and Son Duo in ‘Outlaw Posse’ appeared first on Casting Networks.

When we caught up with the actress/filmmaker, we wanted to know more about the person behind all the creative work, which also extends to music. In this installment of Get to Know the Filmmaker, you can catch all the details about her new album (M)OTHER and learn how both Lawmen: Bass Reeves and the new Paramount+ documentary Becoming King got made.

This video interview has been edited and condensed.

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The post Executive Producer Jessica Oyelowo Shares How ‘Lawmen: Bass Reeves’ and ‘Becoming King’ Got Made first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Executive Producer Jessica Oyelowo Shares How ‘Lawmen: Bass Reeves’ and ‘Becoming King’ Got Made appeared first on Casting Networks.