Ellen DeGeneres Makes Year's First Oscar Prediction: It's Oprah

Ellen Makes The Year's First Oscar Prediction
FILE- This Sept. 26, 2011, file photo, originally provided by Warner Bros., shows Ellen DeGeneres during a taping of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in Burbank, Calif. The Kennedy Center in Washington is awarding DeGeneres the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on Oct. 22. The show will be broadcast on PBS stations Oct. 30. (AP Photo/Warner Bros., Michael Rozman, File)
FILE- This Sept. 26, 2011, file photo, originally provided by Warner Bros., shows Ellen DeGeneres during a taping of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in Burbank, Calif. The Kennedy Center in Washington is awarding DeGeneres the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on Oct. 22. The show will be broadcast on PBS stations Oct. 30. (AP Photo/Warner Bros., Michael Rozman, File)

Critics aren't the only ones praising Oprah Winfrey's performance in "Lee Daniels' The Butler": Ellen DeGeneres, next year's Oscar host, used her Twitter account on Friday to give Winfrey an early boost for Best Supporting Actress -- this despite not even having seen "Lee Daniels' The Butler":

Daniels' film, which stars Winfrey, Forest Whitaker, David Oyelowo, Terrence Howard, John Cusack, Jane Fonda, Mariah Carey and many other big-name stars, is set for release on Aug. 16. Thus far, most critics have enjoyed the film, while even those who didn't have praised Winfrey's performance.

"Oprah brings some much-needed levity -- and eventually high drama-- to the film," Katey Rich wrote at CinemaBlend. "When Cecil (Whitaker) comes home the day Kennedy is shot, her honest-to-God response is 'I'm really sorry about the President. But you and that White House can kiss my ass.' How can anybody else be expected to compete with that?"

Oprah Winfrey, Stedman Graham

'Lee Daniels' The Butler' Premiere

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