Now that the Academy Awards gave Daniel Day-Lewis the Best Actor award for his portrayal in "Lincoln"; pundits have already started speculating about next year's Best Actor contenders.
Leonardo Dicaprio is at the top of many pundits' list as he has two films this year. His first film "The Great Gatsby" was supposed to be released last year, but post-production work delayed the film to the summer. He will also be seen in Martin Scoresese's "Wolf of Wall Street." The film will mark the actor and director's fifth collaboration.
Steve Carrell is already receiving buzz for his latest film "Foxcatcher" from Bennett Miller. Miller has led both Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote) and Brad Pitt (Moneyball) to Best Actor nominations and Carrell's role as a schizophrenic millionaire is a juicy role that Oscar voters like to honor.
Matthew McConaughey is also being talked about for his role in "Dallas Buyers Club" for which he lost weight to play an AIDs victim. He will also star in "Wolf of Wall Street" and "Mud." The three roles could potentially land McConaughey his first nomination after being snubbed for his highly acclaimed role in "Magic Mike."
Benedict Cumberbatch has already received buzz for his turn as Julian Assange in "The Fifth Element." He will also star in "Star Trek: Into Darkness," the second "Hobbit" and in "August: Osage County" for which he could score a Supporting Actor nomination.
Academy Award winner Colin Firth has not been seen in a movie since 2011 in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy." He will star in "The Railway Man" alongside Nicole Kidman and will play a soldier who was captured by the Japanese during World War 2. The film does not have distribution but could premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.
After Sundance, Michael B. Jordan received buzz for his role in "Fruitvale." The film won the Sundance Film Festival and under the Weinstein Company it can end up being the "Beasts of the Southern Wild" of this year.
Other performances that could potentially get nominated next year include Chiwetel Ejiofer for Steve McQueen's "Twelve Year's a Slave," Tom Hanks for "Saving Mr. Banks," Forest Whitaker for "The Butler" and Christian Bale for David O. Russell's Untitled Project.