Frost/Nixon Already In Oscar Battle

Frost/Nixon Already In Oscar Battle

The fantastic "Frost/Nixon" opens next month, starring Brit Michael Sheen (Tony Blair in "The Queen") and Frank Langella, revisiting the roles they played on the stage. Directed by Ron Howard and produced by Brian Grazer, it's definitely Oscar bait, but in what categories?
Foxnews.com reports from a New York screening Monday night:

The studio would like Sheen to go for the Oscar in the supporting category so he might win. Sheen, who's on screen just as much as Langella, wants to go for lead even if he doesn't win. He feels it establishes him as a lead actor.

If Sheen goes into Supporting, he's in good company: Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt), Bill Irwin (Rachel Getting Married), Javier Bardem (Vicki Cristina Barcelona), Ralph Fiennes (The Reader), and Brad Pitt (Burn After Reading) are already strong contenders, along with Heath Ledger from The Dark Knight.

The fact is, Langella, who won the Tony for playing Nixon, will probably win the Oscar. He is just sensational. It's one of the few times that a theater performance has translated to screen like this. Langella is mesmerizing as Nixon, It's a tour de force embodiment, not an impersonation.

Does he want the Oscar? "You bet I do!" he responded when the screening was done. Well, he should get it. And Sheen? His work just gets better and better. And he did confirm that he will star in a kind of sequel to "The Queen" as Tony Blair again, written also by Morgan. This time, the story will be about his friendship with Bill Clinton.

So Universal's Ron Meyer and Brian Grazer toss their hats into the Oscar pool, joining "Slumdog Millionaire," "Rachel Getting Married," and "Doubt" so far as serious Best Picture contenders. Stay tuned for just a couple more titles to be added to this list.

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