I admire Bradley Cooper’s pluckiness in this year’s Oscar fight. He hasn’t given up on the Best Actor award although a win would be a major upset. If it’s any consolation, BCoop won a Reuters poll where a group of random theatergoers said he should win. This is a crazy result, but more people have watched American Sniper than the other Oscar movies. Bradley received the ‘Murica vote. The poll also said Julianne Moore wouldn’t win Best Actress, which …. sure.
This year’s Oscar race also collides with the trial of Chris Kyle’s killer. So the film is on people’s minds. Bradley is also everywhere without being anywhere. He’s holed up on Broadway (where he’s working on a potential Tony), but he’s handing out interviews like candy. Bradley spoke with 60 Minutes, and he brought his mom along. She will be his Oscar date. He confessed to the LA Times how much he loves Chris Kyle, and nothing else matters but honoring Kyle’s legacy.
Coop gave a huge interview to Deadline, which reveals how involved he was in shaping the film’s narrative. The most interesting part is where Bradley namedrops actors who say he should win:
On finding the moment when Chris Kyle cracks: “That scene in the bar, that second scene, the reason why that became the crack is because I loved Chris so much. I still remember, it was the second take. And I remember on the phone I felt like I was going to really lose it. I’m on the phone, and because of the way it was written I could hear the kids in the background. When we shot her side there were no kids, but the way I was playing it, I could hear the kids. And then the camera’s coming and I had the hat on and I kind of turned away, because I didn’t want the camera … [I wanted] to protect Chris.”
This movie isn’t about war at all: “To me, it was always just a soldier’s story. And on purpose, there’s no talk about the war, why we’re in it, nothing. It is not what that movie’s about.”
All the actors want him to win: “Just insane. The calls I got from people. I don’t even know Tom Hardy, and he sent me the most incredible email. Anne Hathaway said something publicly and I called her and I just said, hey, we don’t know each other, but it got back to me what you said, and it means everything. Ashton Kutcher, Ryan Reynolds, guys I don’t really know. Sean Penn, I couldn’t believe it. Now, Ben’s my friend and I would do anything for him, but for him to host that thing in a year where he could be up for Best Actor, too? They don’t make many like that dude.
[From Deadline]
The last time I talked about BCoop, he was playing dumb and pretending not to know the movie would be a hit. His tune has changed. Now Bradley confirms the stories we heard about Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck, and Josh Brolin pushing hard for a BCoop coup d’etat. Affleck even hosted special Sniper screenings, which is a strong show of support. Was it right for Bradley to mention his supporters by name before the Oscars? It feels like a Gwyneth Paltrow move.
Movie stills courtesy of Warner Bros; photos courtesy of WENN
It just seems like excitement, not bad form really…
He’s a little bit up in his own posterior feathers lately.
http://38.media.tumblr.com/0530a23a6c91277a6836a263657ee584/tumblr_n5siz7WfhJ1s2wio8o1_500.gif
Haha! I prefer the beige booty pictures though… 😉
wonderful!
Whatever, he’s SO GOOD in that film he has every right to be.
Bad form. I could never sanction name dropping.
Unless it’s mispronounced, right?
Nope. It’s self-aggrandizement, pure and simple. Funny that he mentioned Hathaway – she’s his psychic twin in phoniness, smarminess and self-regard.
If he wins the Oscar this year, someone bought it for him. Someone has already bought him all those noms, none of which he deserved. He certainly is well-connected, I will say that for him. Eight or nine years ago he was doing travelogues for Globe Trekker. How far he has come.
I’ve often heard that it’s “all about him” in relationships…..he’s just not my favorite male star at all. I’m certainly not rooting for a win for him. I honestly do not think he deserves an Oscar just because he starred in this film…..
He makes my skin crawl
Not any worse than what some others have been doing.
Just so long as the beige booty shorts stay hidden from now on.
👆 this.
How dare you throw water on beige booty shorts?
http://www.celebitchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/120165PCN_BradleyShorts16a.jpg
Dying. You’re on fire today, Kidoa.
Edit. duplicate post.
Jayna, maybe I’m reading too much into it.
But was the “Ashton Kutcher, Ryan Reynolds, guys I don’t really know” line, unintentional swipe?
Especially compared to how effusive he was about the other artists he name checked?
I don’t think so and he’s actually friends with Reynolds so I don’t think the phrasing meant anything.
I had read he was friends with Reynolds.
Which is why I’m surprised he dismisses him here as a “a guy I don’t really know”.?
I read that as his friends *and* guys he doesn’t really know, not “these people, who I don’t really know…” but I have baby brain, so could be tripping on the sleep dep.
I don’t think so. I think he wanted to show he isn’t friends with these guys, yet they reached out to him about that performance, not just actor friends who praised it.
something about him doesn’t sit right with me, so I think its really Goopy.
I feel the same.
Furthermore he seems to be a strong “Leonardo DiCaprio case”: actors with average skills that get high profile roles, always playing the same kind of characters.
I was pretty disappointed with the movie and at any point I could say that it was a Clint Eastwood’s movie. It’s way lower than is previous work. I guess he just gets a nomination because of the ultra patriot side of his role. That was not an Oscar performance.
IMO it was really embarassing to see him name drop everyone like that. It seems super desperate.
I’m kind of surprised he loves Chris Kyle so much, that puts be off Bradley a lot
Aww I like him! A lot! He seems like a hard-working guy, and I am really open to anyone (man or woman) owning their success. I don’t think it’s bad form. I like to see people battling a little bit, to show they aren’t “above” the whole campaign.
He just seems really moved by the support from fellow artists he doesn’t know and by Ben who is very supportive of him. He didn’t just act in this movie. He produced it and was very passionate about it and close to his family when he died before they started filming. I think he is very humbled by the attention given to his performance. He had said it was such an important movie to him as far as getting the character right that if he didn’t feel like he could do his Chis justice he was going to walk away from the project..
Not bad form and I do think it was a huge surprise this was a hit. No other Iraq war movie has ever been succesful.
What’s funny to me is that Eddie Redmayne isn’t getting called out for his insufferable campaigning over at another site they are calling him Redcarpet for his near Hathaway interviews.
Only here is like that, everywhere else is calling him out.
I was just going to say this. It’s not fair to call Bradley Cooper out when Eddie Redmanye is out there doing his thing.
Who on this site refers to ER as Eddie Red Carpet, along with his wife Hannah Baglady.
Jake Gyllenhaal was robbed!!!! Cooper was fine portraying Chris Kyle, but, in my opinion, nothing special…Jake should have been up for NIghtCrawler…He was awesomely creepy and dark in that movie! I’m getting tired of actors getting nominated just because they play some real person. Jake’s, Lou Bloom, was one of the best original characters I’ve seen on screen in a long time! Very different!
Jake should have been nominated before BCoop!
Ralph Fiennes for me!!!!
Especially as comedic performances are often under appreciated.
I completely agree Jake was robbed. I would for sure swap out Steve Carrell. A massive prosthetic nose and slow, whisper-speak does not equal Oscar in my book. Haven’t seen American Sniper so I can’t speak to B.Coop’s performance.
I haven’t seen American Sniper yet, will do so Saturday, so I can’t judge whether Brad C belongs on the list or not. However, I have seen all the other nominated performances and I would have a completely different list. Jake G was robbed. Timothy Spall was robbed. Phillip Seymour Hoffman was robbed (A Most Wanted Man). Ralph Fiennes was robbed. David Oyelowo was robbed. I don’t understand why Cumberbatch made the cut at all.
Absolutely agree, jake g was phenomenal. Can I also add Tom Hardy in The Drop who blew me away, as did the film.
It’d be David O, Timothy Spall, Eddie Redmayne, Jake G, and Ralph Fiennes for me. (But that’s too British for the Oscars, I think).
I haven’t seen Birdman or American Sniper so I cant say if Keaton or Cooper should have gotten a nom. Carrell, I love him, and he was great in Foxcatcher, but no nom for him.
For the life of me I will never understand how Timothy Spall didn’t get a BAFTA nomination for Mr. Turner.
I’d have Ben and Eddie out (nothing wrong but nothing special and films not good enough to elevate performance). Bradley also out (cheese plus violence is a weird combination but not ‘ard to achieve).
Spall in. Jake G in. Large cohort for the third spot, all superior performances to the double B and Es.
Oh, and Keaton for the eventual win, please.
I’d go with Fiennes, but the first person I’d ax is actually Carrell. And I like the guy, but was that straight-up caricature.
American Sniper was grossly irresponsible at times in the glorification of Kyle and the spread of dangerous misinformation, so it’s one of those extreme circumstances where I don’t care how Cooper was, I’m against all noms. We have enough problems as it is in the US.
You’ve probably heard about the Kyle kerfuffle already but here’s a great take from a vet on just how much of AS was pro-war propaganda:
http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/02/04/veteran-i-see-american-sniper-dangerous-not-reasons-youd-think
My neighbor saw Selma and thought the acting was weak and of course the historical inaccuracies irritated her. She didn’t feel it was Oscar worthy, including David Olyelowo.
Agree lilac re jake, PS Hoffman RIP and Ralph. Olyelowo was good but did not blow me away. I did not get a real sense of the ” inner life” of MLK, a great great man but not a saint, which would have made me feel he had been totally robbed. Will look toward to Jamie Dornan’s nom next year (!)
I agree. I’m an Oscars junkie and the day of the show is a sacred holiday in my home, but this year I’m not compelled whatsoever. In part because of the lack of Jake Gyllenhaal, David Oyelowo, and Ralph Fiennes. Each year someone is always snubbed. Last year it was Marion Cotillard for me. But this time, I’m actually baffled by the majority of nominees. I just don’t care for most of them and it sucks.
I loved Jake, Ralph, David and Timothy too. I can’t watch Cooper because I find him quite unpleasant and Redmayne and Cumberbatch are just pampered rich boys.
Is he framing it as if he wins, it is a victory for Chris Kyle? Maybe that’s too generous.
Edit*
+1 excellent comment. I read it that way too.
Good so its not just me.
I mean he did not even elaborate how Kutcher and Reynolds contacted him the way he went into it with Hardy, Hathaway and Affleck.
Just a throwaway line for those two.
I loved American Sniper, thought TIG was overrated, thought Nightcrawler was overrated and Jakes performance was good but not that big a leap to be creepy. I like Sniper better than TOE but think Eddie probably deserves it. All those body contortions were very impressive. Otherwise id go for BCoop
I think the fact that American Sniper will very likely to become top grossing 2014 domestically really strange to believe. When is the last time a non-franchise film did that?
I was SO shocked with how much money it made. But when I really thought about it, it made sense–‘MURICA! (complete with a scene about the twin towers going down), military, SEALS, guns. Yeah. It makes sense.
The Murica people who don’t usually go to movies have flocked to see it.
Get out of here-it’s the top grossing 2014 film in America? Wow. I knew it did well, but not that well.
I think the controversy really helped it. I said it before–people on my FB who NEVER post about movies or celebrities, were posting stuff about American Sniper–especially after Michael Moore made the “snipers are cowards” comments. There were a lot of postings about seeing the movie to support the military–in that vein…..
Tara–not quite yet. We’ll see if it has the legs to catch up with and then beat Hunger Games and Guardians of the Galaxy..
What? No mention of Betty White?
I see fake baby isn’t listed as supporting his Oscar run. Did they have a falling out?
I think it’s nice that he’s acknowledging people who gave him support. It’s not Goopy named dropping at all.
Of course it is bad form. He shouldn’t have been nominated to begin with. His nomination is just further proof that the Oscars really don’t mean that much anymore.
It’s namedropping. It’s no coincidence this article came out right before the final day of Oscar voting. He’s letting any latecomers know whose support he has. It’s crass. Very Goopy.
Exactly.
BTW I thought Anne was campaigning for Eddie.
I thought she was too.
I maintain my theory that B Coop will win the Oscar. Keaton has already “won” in that his career is having a resurgence and he’s been validated. And Eddie is young and has all the accolades in England and will eventually get one.
Now- on to a different more random theory: is Ben Affleck working with the CIA? Pearl Harbor, Argo, and now screening for ‘Murica the movie? Hmmm…it’s not impossible as the CIA does have a film division.
I’ll try to articulate my two cents very carefully. I wouldn’t be suprised if Cooper would win. Not because he gave the best performance, but because of the movies American Hero story and Clint Eastwood being the director. The voters are former winners, aren’t they? So mostly it’s old white Hollywood. They might hold a very american story and the portrayal of the main character a lot closer to their hearts than a british guy playing a british physicist (for example). I think Carell and Cumberbatch don’t have a chance (and they know that). Leaving Redmayne, Keaton and Cooper. The American Hero story alone could get lots of people to vote for Cooper – no matter how good his acting was.
I can’t talk about the other nominees because I didn’t see the movies, but putting Cooper and Keaton in the same category is just insane. I didn’t love Birdman but the performances from Keaton, Emma Stone and Edward Norton were beyond great!! Nothing that can be told about Bradley Cooper. I hope Keaton wins, that would be well deserved.
I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited to see who wins in the Best Actor category. Last year, I was on the edge of my seat waiting to hear if Lupita would win(so glad she did). If you look around the internet at what the Oscar experts are predicting, it’s either Keaton or Redmayne, but I think it would be pretty amazing and a huge shock if Bradley managed to beat them both. These Oscar experts are really just guessing like everyone else is anyway.
I do think that American Sniper deserves every attention it gets, but It’s not an well made movie. I get what Quentin Tarantino said about how he doesn’t want to be and old, out of touch director.
I enjoyed the movie, but I feel like it could’ve been cut in half, and still have the same impact. In the way that it went through each of Chris Kyle’s four (or three?) tours, it felt very paint by the numbers. And if I watched the movie more than once, I think it might lessen the impact, IDK. But I was blown away by BCoop. I didn’t think he deserved his last two Oscar noms, but I think he deserved this one, and would be genuinely happy/excited if he won.
I agree, the story could have been tighter but BCoop just transformed himself. I’d be happy if he’d win as well.
I can see him being legitimately surprised at the success of the film, it has done amazing numbers.
Beyond that, I find this to be name dropping and kind of annoying. I can understand being appreciative of their support and letting them know, but don’t do it in an interview. If Anne Hathaway had done such a thing people would’ve ripped her to shreds for it (maybe that did happen and I don’t remember).
Had the same thought about Cumberbatch. Don’t even care how hard he is campaigning for the Oscar, but if he would have said the exact same thing he would have been torn apart for name dropping. Because that’s what it is.
Eh, I think he’s just moved. I like Bradley and think he’s a talented actor. He deserves the nomination.
MICHAEL KEATON.
@TheBizzla – Agreed. I’m for Michael Keaton. Now if only I had an Academy vote to cast…
Meh. I’m no lover of BCOOP except for DAT AZZZZZZZ of course. But he’s doing minimal whoring compared to some comet riders I know.
He sounds terribly desperate.
fuggedaboutit, BCoop! No can do this year, Eddie muffin got it.
I’m still waiting for a huge Uma Thurman-esque media feeding frenzy where we’ll all be encouraged to scrutinize and theorize about what the hell Bradley Cooper has done to his face. I’m sure it’ll happen any day now.
I love B cooper for some unknown reason and I hope he wins.
He did something alright and it’s no bueno.
He loves Chris Kyle? Didn’t he only talk to him for five minutes on the phone. Maybe he means he loves that playing Chris Kyle might win him an Oscar. That’s why he’s all protective of the character.
Sigh. I’m starting to really hate Oscar campaigns. It turns all my previous liking for an actor in active dislike.
He got really close with the widow and father and kids. The widow shared stories of Chris all the way through filming, so he has an emotional bond with the family, even still. I think he feels like he knew him through his book but, most importantly, through the widow and family.
I just saw The Nightcrawler. Jake G.’s performance was amazing in it. I can’t believe he didn’t receive an Oscar nomination when he’s received all the other nominations at the award shows. He really internally inhabits a character so well you forget it’s Jake Gyllenhaal.
It seemed to come from a place of genuine surprise and appreciation. At least—yeah, that’s what I’m hoping and maybe I’m reading into it exactly what I want it to be.
Because I want him to win. He was absolutely phenomenal.
Sadly, a *LOT* of vet friends I’ve spoken with (OIF and OAF vets) feel the same way about American Sniper that BDSM practitioners feel about FSoG.
He shouldn’t be nominated, that film was deceptive propaganda based on lies told by both its director and trigger happy racist psychotic character. Bradley Cooper is a soulless douchebag.
Voting intentions are meant to be private. From that point of view it’s bad form, and I’m not sure the people he mentioned would be thrilled.
Having said that … praise is no guarantee that they voted for you. Hollywood people praise each other all the time. For all we know half those people said the same gushy things to Keaton and Redmayne and Cumberwhatsit…
Bradley Cooper namedrops actors who support his Oscar run.
Bad Form?
In a word: Yes
Does anyone know the validity of Bradley Cooper & Suki Waterhouse’s relationship?