The Best Actor competition is one of the most wide open races this year at the Oscars. Two actors are first time nominees while the other three have been nominated numerous times. Another interesting fact: three of the nominees are playing real-life people, giving those actors an automatic advantage because the Academy loves performances based on real people. Previous winners include Daniel Day-Lewis ("Lincoln"), Jean DuJardin ("The Artist"), Colin Firth ("The King's Speech"), Jeff Daniels ("Crazy heart"), and Sean Penn ("Milk").
Christian Bale - "American Hustle" - Bale received his second nomination at the Academy Awards. He was previously nominated and won in the Best Supporting Actor category for "The Fighter." Bale flew under the radar throughout the awards race and many pundits expected he would not get nominated as he did not win a single precursor award. Bale, however, managed to get BAFTA, Critics Choice and Golden Globe nominations. While his performance is superb, he has no buzz and therefore will not win this year.
Bruce Dern - "Nebraska" - Dern received his second nomination for the Academy Awards. He was previously nominated in 1978 for "Coming Home." Throughout awards season Dern was once considered a front-runner especially after winning the Cannes Best Actor award. He also won the Los Angeles Film critics and the National Board of Review. However, he failed to win the BAFTA, Golden Globe, Critics Choice, and Screen Actors Guild awards. Dern's film "Nebraska" also failed to garner any major awards and lacks the buzz necessary to do well at the Oscars. Dern may have reemerged in Hollywood as a great actor this year but that alone won't win him the Oscar.
Leonardo Dicaprio - "The Wolf of Wall Street" - DiCaprio received his fifth Oscar nomination and third Best Actor nomination. He was previously nominated for "Blood Diamond," "The Aviator" and "What's Eating Gilbert Grape." DiCaprio has been ignored for a number of years for some of his best performances including "Django Unchained" and "Revolutionary Road" and pundits believe it his year to win the Oscar. Additionally, he plays a real-life character and critics are hailing his acting as some of the best of his career. The actor was once considered a front-runner after winning the Golden Globe but he failed to win the BAFTA. There is nothing secure in this category and he could possibly upset, however, many Academy voters did not like the movie and that could hurt his chances of winning.
Chiwetel Ejiofor - "12 Years a Slave" - For his work in Steve McQueen's film, Ejiofor garnered his first Oscar nomination. For a while the actor was thought to be the front-runner after winning 20 critics societies, but he failed to capture the Golden Globe, the Critics Choice and SAG award. However, he took home the BAFTA boosting his chances, especially since the BAFTA are usually right in the acting awards. Ejiofor could be a strong contender but given that a number of Academy voters were scared to watch "12 Years a Slave," the British actor could get less votes and lose.
Matthew McConaughey - "Dallas Buyers Club" - McConaughey received his first Oscar nomination for a role that has been widely publicized. The actor lost 30 pounds and the Academy likes transformative work from actors. For his role McConaughey has won a number of awards including the Gotham, Critics Choice, Golden Globe and SAG awards. With these major victories, and his film "Dallas Buyers Club" surprising at the Oscar nominations, McConaughey is the clear front-runner.
Predictions: McConaughey is likely to win but DiCaprio could steal the award if the Academy feels he is overdue. Ejiofor could win if the Academy wants to give many awards to "12 Years a Slave."