Michael Smith: Next year's best picture contenders, what's next from Oscar-nominated actors
BY MICHAEL SMITH World Scene Writer
Friday, March 01, 2013
3/01/13 at 7:09 AM
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lawrence and others have barely gotten their Oscars up on the mantel at home, but we can't help but wonder: Which films appear to be early candidates in next year's Oscar race for best picture, and what are some of the actors' next projects?
The pictures
'The Great Gatsby' (May)
We've seen how filmmaker Baz Luhrmann turned "Moulin Rouge" on its head with modern music, as well as his era-bending version of "Romeo + Juliet." Now he reunites with his Romeo, Leonardo DiCaprio, for an adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald book that will be the filmmaker's own unique vision - in 3-D.
'Fruitvale' (TBA)
Movies break out from the Sundance Film Festival every year ("Beasts of the Southern Wild" and "The Sessions" last year), and this drama - the 2013 winner of both Sundance's audience and grand jury prizes - about a police shooting looks to be the most likely to enter the Oscar race.
'August: Osage County' (fall 2013)
We can't go without mentioning the film shot in Oklahoma last year that everyone is expecting to garner a bevy of Oscar nominations, with Meryl Streep at the top of the ensemble list in the role of the pill-popping matriarch. Based on Tulsan Tracy Letts' Pulitzer Prize-winning play.
'Gravity' (October)
Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are astronauts stranded in space who try to get home in this sci-fi thriller from director Alfonso Cuaron, whose "Children of Men" was a classic of the genre.
Captain Phillips (October)
Tom Hanks plays Capt. Richard Phillips, who was at the helm of the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two centuries when Somali pirates commandeered his vessel in 2009. Directed by Paul Greengrass of "United 93."
'The Fifth Estate' (November)
Benedict Cumberbatch ("Sherlock") moves from high-profile villain in the new "Star Trek" movie in May to this portrayal of Julian Assange and his Wikileaks website and its instant fame and later fall, seen through the eyes of Assange's early business partner.
'The Monuments Men' (December)
George Clooney again, this time starring in and directing a World War II drama about art experts working to save masterpieces stolen by the Nazis - and in a race against time, as Hitler plans to destroy them. Also starring Daniel Craig, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett and Jean Dujardin, among many others.
'The Wolf of Wall Street' (TBA)
It's DiCaprio again this time, starring as a New York stockbroker who's pushed to work with authorities on a massive securities fraud case involving Wall Street corruption, morally bankrupt bankers and mob connections. Martin Scorsese directs an all-star cast, based on Jordan Belfort's book.
The performers
Jennifer Lawrence
Lawrence re-teams with "Silver Linings Playbook" co-star Bradley Cooper for "Serena," a Depression-era tale based on Ron Rash's book about attempts to wrest away the power of a North Carolina timber empire. Of course, Lawrence's big project for 2013 is November's "Catching Fire," the sequel to "The Hunger Games," which includes fellow nominee Philip Seymour Hoffman in a key role.
Hugh Jackman
There will be no singing when Jackman returns to play Logan - better known as Wolverine - for the fifth time on film when "Wolverine" debuts July 26.
Denzel Washington
A pair of federal lawmen investigating each other (Washington and Mark Wahlberg) learn they have been set up by the mob and then must work together. Arriving in August.
Jessica Chastain
She stars in an ambitious project that is actually two films: "The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Hers" and "The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: His." The pictures tell the story of a modern couple, with one film told from the wife's perspective and the other film told from the point of view of the husband. Chastain stars with James McAvoy ("Atonement").
Naomi Watts
The "Impossible" star goes from the tsunami film to a different kind of drama, playing Princess Diana in a biopic, "Diana," expected for release later this year.
Tommy Lee Jones and Robert De Niro
The pair of nominees work together in October's "Malavita," which finds that old habits die hard for a U.S. mob family that is relocated to France under the Witness Protection Program.
Amy Adams
The "Master" nominee is working on numerous projects - including a David O. Russell drama and playing the lead in a Janis Joplin biopic - but the one film confirmed for her in 2013 is "Man of Steel," the Superman update in June, which finds Adams playing Lois Lane.
Original Print Headline: Oscar talk: Promising new films, what's next
Michael Smith 918-581-8479
michael.smith@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence will again team up with her "Silver Linings Playbook" co-star Bradley Cooper in "Serena." CHRIS PIZZELLO/Invision/Associated Press
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