Oscar experts predict Meryl Streep will win for 'Iron Lady'

The release of a new poster for Meryl Streep's upcoming film and her inevitable next Oscar nomination –- as British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady" -– brings up the nagging question: Can she actually win?

Streep is almost a perennial nominee. When a derby occurs without her contending, like last year, it seems odd, like something familiar and precious is missing. She's been nominated 16 times, but the last 12 of those bids have been defeats. She hasn't won since for 1982's "Sophie's Choice". Her only other victory was as supporting actress for 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer."

But now, if Gold Derby's Oscarologists are correct, she's set to triumph again. Eight top experts polled by the site predict Streep will win next February: Pete Hammond (Deadline Hollywood), Dave Karger (Entertainment Weekly), Michael Musto (Village Voice), Steve Pond (the Wrap), Paul Sheehan (Gold Derby), Sasha Stone (AwardsDaily), S.T. VanAirsdale (Movieline), Jeff Wells (Hollywood Elsewhere) and Susan Wloszczyna (USA Today).

Gold Derby's Inside Track gives Streep the best racetrack odds (8 to 11), followed by Glenn Close (11 to 2 for "Albert Nobbs") and Viola Davis (6 to 1 for "The Help"). Personally, I'm betting on Viola Davis, but on rare occasions, ahem, I've been wrong.

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— Tom O'Neil

Photo: "The Iron Lady." Credit: Weinstein Co.

Meryl Streep and Neil Diamond to receive Kennedy Center Honors

 
The rumor turns out to be true: Meryl Streep is among the newest batch of luminaries to receive Kennedy Center Honors. Other recipients will be singers Neil Diamond and Barbara Cook, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and saxophonist and composer Sonny Rollins.

This marks the 34th year that the laurels have been bestowed and broadcast on CBS. This year's ceremony will take place on Dec. 4 and will be telecast on Dec. 27 at 9 p.m. PST/EST.

Recipients are recognized for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts — whether in dance, music, theater, opera, motion pictures or television — and are selected by the center’s board of trustees. The primary criterion in the selection process is excellence.

"This year, the Kennedy Center selects five extraordinary individuals whose collective artistry has contributed significantly to the cultural life of our nation and the world,” said Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein.

“With her sublime voice and rich performances, Barbara Cook has defined all that is best and brightest in the Great American Songbook. Neil Diamond’s songwriting genius has created one of the most enduring catalogs of American popular music and his live performances have captivated audiences for five decades. Yo-Yo Ma’s sterling musicianship makes him one of the most versatile and popular classical music performers in the world, and his Silk Road Project has inspired students across the world to love and honor music. Saxophonist Sonny Rollins’ masterful improvisation and powerful presence have infused the truly American art form of jazz with passion and energy. The sheer brilliance and breadth of Meryl Streep's performances count as one of the most exhilarating cultural spectacles of our time."

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-- Tom O'Neil

Photo: Meryl Streep shows off her trophy at the 2010 Golden Globe Awards. Credit: Kirk McCoy / Los Angeles Times

Meryl Streep to receive Kennedy Center Honor?

"My sources say Meryl Streep will be one of the Kennedy Center honorees this year," Larry King tweeted. "You heard it here first."

The Kennedy Center's PR office declined to confirm or deny King's report, but the official word will be out soon. The list of honorees is usually unveiled in early September.

Streep hasn't been hailed by the Kennedy Center in the past, but she's participated in its salutes to Robert De Niro and Mike Nichols. Last year's winners were Merle Haggard, Jerry Herman, Bill T. Jones, Paul McCartney and Oprah Winfrey.

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-- Tom O'Neil

Photo: Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady," which probably will earn Streep her 17th Oscar nomination after it is released in December. Credit: The Weinstein Co.

'My Week With Marilyn' could be one of many Weinstein films at Oscars

Now that Harvey Weinstein has rebounded so spectacularly at the Oscars with his best-picture victory for "The King's Speech," he's mounting a major new drive with a broad slate of contenders that includes "My Week With Marilyn," which just nabbed the prestigious designation of being the Centerpiece presentation at the New York Film Festival (Sept. 30–Oct. 16). That's the slot that helped to launch "Precious" into the derby two years ago. It will be screened on Oct. 9 at Alice Tully Hall.

Directed by British helmer Simon Curtis ("Cranford"), "My Week with Marilyn" chronicles the real-life experiences of a lowly film assistant (Eddie Redmayne) who teams up with Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) for a series of whimsical adventures while she shoots "The Prince and the Showgirl" with Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh).

And if this film festival spot does indeed launch "Marilyn" into the awards derby, Weinstein Co. will have its hands full. It's just one of several films in its Oscar arsenal:

"The Artist" –- Jean Dujardin won best actor at the Cannes Film Festival for his portrayal of silent film star George Valentin in this silent film based upon the last flickering days of silent celluloid in Hollywood.

"Coriolanus" –- Ralph Fiennes directs and stars in the Shakespeare classic about a banished hero of Rome who allies with a sworn enemy to take his revenge on the city. Adapted by John Logan ("Gladiator," "The Aviator").

"The Iron Lady" –- Meryl Streep as British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during the Falklands crisis. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd ("Mamma Mia!").

"W.E." –- A contemporary woman (Abbie Cornish) probes the notorious romance between Britain's Edward VIII (James D'Arcy), who forfeited his throne for love of American divorcee Wallis Simpson (Andrea Riseborough ) during the 1930s. Directed by Madonna. (Yes, that's right –- Madonna.)

-- Tom O'Neil

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Photo: Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe in "My Week With Marilyn." Credit: Weinstein Co.

Harvey Weinstein goes for the gold again, buying Meryl Streep-starrer 'The Iron Lady' (Updated)

This post has been corrected. See the note at the bottom for details.

"The King's Speech's" four Oscars earlier this year have sure put some extra spring in Harvey Weinstein's step. Not to mention some extra cash. For Weinstein has been on a buying spree lately, scooping up Ralph Fiennes' directorial debut "Coriolanus," starring Gerard Butler and Vanessa Redgrave out of Sundance. He then bought the high school football documentary "Undefeated" out of the South-By-Southwest film festival and Lee Hirsch's documentary "The Bully Project," about bullying in America from Tribeca.

But what may be the crown jewel of this latest shopping spree is his recent Cannes acquisition of "The Iron Lady." The film stars Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first and only female prime minister. Jim Broadbent co-stars as Thatcher's husband, Denis. The New York distributor plans to release the film by the end of the year and clearly has Oscar in his sights.

The movie, from director Phyllida Lloyd, Streep's collaborator on "Mamma Mia," is still not finished, but Weinstein has seen some assembled footage and says he was "blown away by the performance."

Weinstein has worked with both Streep and Broadbent previously, releasing Streep's "The Hours," which was nominated for nine Oscars and won one, and Broadbent's "Iris," which landed the British actor his only gold statuette. No release date has yet been set, but with this kind of pedigree, an Oscar release is inevitable. 

Perhaps Weinstein can finally get Streep, who has been nominated for 16 Oscars but hasn't won since  1983 for her role in "Sophie's Choice," another gold man for her mantle.

 [For the Record, 2:40 p.m. May 13: An earlier version of this post said Streep's "Sophie's Choice" win was her only Oscar. She has two.]

-- Nicole Sperling

Photo credit: Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times 

Colin Firth's rep denies the actor left his Oscar in the loo

"Story is completely untrue," Colin Firth's representative told The Envelope, referring to reports that her client left his Oscar in the bathroom soon after winning Sunday night. "Though it did give us a good laugh."

"Colin Firth was so flushed by his Oscar triumph that he left his Best Actor trophy on top of a loo," reported London's Daily Mail about his attendance at the Vanity Fair party. "Luckily, the cloakroom attendant spotted it on a cistern and chased after the star to hand it back."

If "The King's Speech" star really had left his statuette in the washroom, he wouldn't have been the first. Meryl Streep famously abandoned her Oscar for "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1979), but was reunited with it moments later when another ladies room occupant discovered it and ran after her. Who can blame Streep for the oversight, actually? After all, it was merely a statuette for the supporting category. She'd catch up with the Oscar for lead actress three years later ("Sophie's Choice").

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-- Tom O'Neil

Photo: Colin Firth, Oscar firmly in hand. Credit: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press

Oscars 2012: Who's going to be on next year's best picture list?

 
Are you as burned out on 2010's Oscar season as we are? If so, take a look into the future to see who we are going to be tired of by next February. We've compiled a completely arbitrary -- but intriguing -- list of what films could be making it to the winner's circle in 2012. Feel free to chime in with your predictions because, really, this time next year we will all likely have been proved wrong.

(Please note: these are in no particular order.)

1. "Contagion": Steven Soderbergh, Oscar winner for "Traffic," is back with another ensemble piece, this time an action-thriller centered on a team of doctors that must deal with a deadly disease outbreak. The film features an all-star cast with Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Gwyneth Paltrow and Marion Cotillard, along with this year's nominee in the supporting actor category John Hawkes. It may be too "Bourne Identity" for the academy but it's not a bad place to start. (Opens Oct. 21)

2. "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close": Stephen Daldry ("The Reader") helms this adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer's novel about a 9-year old boy who searches New York City for a lock that matches a key left by his father (Tom Hanks), who was killed in the Sept. 11 attacks. Eric Roth ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") adapted the book and the pedigree of cast and filmmakers has Oscar written all over it. And for that extra boost, uber-producer Scott Rudin is behind this one too. (Not yet dated.)

3. "The Descendants": Alexander Payne ("Sideways") is finally back with a new film, seven years after "Sideways" was released. Payne adapted Kaui Hart Hemmings' novel about a Hawaiian land baron, played by George Clooney, who tries to reconnect with his two daughters after his wife suffers a boating accident.(Not yet dated.)

4. "Tree of Life": Terrence Malick ("The Thin Red Line") has returned with Brad Pitt and Sean Penn starring in a story of a Midwestern family in the 1950s. The film has been kicking around a while but that seems to be more an issue of a corporate distribution shuffle than any knock against the film. (Opens May 27)

5. "The Iron Lady": Meryl Streep pairs up with her "Mamma Mia" director Phyllida Lloyd in this biopic of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The script is written by British playwright Abi Morgan and "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" writer Michael Hirst. Jim Broadbent co-stars as Mr. Thatcher. The British-financed flick does not yet have a U.S. distributor.

Around the awards track: Oscar for Meryl as Maggie? | Harvey's comeback | Academy Awards app is out

● Oscar's "2011 Best Actress race is all but settled," declares Jeffrey Wells upon hearing the news that Meryl Streep is now filming the role of Britain's former Prime Minister Maggie Thatcher in "The Iron Lady." "Look at her!" he adds pointing to her photo. "And imagine her Margaret Thatcher accent .... are you kidding? With Academy members being the suckers they are and always will be for lofty-realm British drama?" Wells notes that there is "a slight complication" from the fact that Streep is also tackling "a sure-to-be-knockout performance as the chain-smoking Violet Weston in John Wells' film version of 'August: Osage County,' which the great Harvey Weinstein is distributing." The role earned Deanna Dunagan a Tony Award for the Broadway production in 2008. HOLLYWOOD-ELSEWHERE

● While Oscar pundits paid too much attention to "The Social Network's" winning the film critics' awards early this derby season, Weinstein was hard at work behind the scenes setting up a late ambush by "The King's Speech." If he nabs the top category, it'll be Harvey's first best picture victory since splitting with Disney and Miramax. Delve into the whole back story in "How Harvey Got His Groove Back." VANITY FAIR

● The Screen Actors Guild Awards took place less than two weeks ago and already the date of next year's show has been announced: Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. SAG AWARDS

● iPad, iPhone and iPod users can now download the official Oscars app that connects users to a nominees' list, trailers for the top-nominated films and an interactive ballot to predict winners. ITUNES

● Caryn James decries the results of the Evening Standard Awards bestowed by a London newspaper with a better reputation for doling out theater prizes than film honors. She says it's "loopy" that Oscar snubbee Andrew Garfield should be voted best actor for his roles in "Never Let Me Go" and "The Social Network" over Oscar front-runner Colin Firth ("The King's Speech"). "It's hard to believe that these awards, determined by a jury of British critics, mean anything when the best actress prize was an even wackier choice. Kristin Scott Thomas was named best actress for 'Leaving,' a ludicrous French film." INDIEWIRE

-- Tom O'Neil

Top photo: Meryl Streep (Pathe)

Bottom photo: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences