Will Hillbilly Elegy win an Oscar?
Based on Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy is officially on Netflix. Starring Amy Adams and Glenn Close, the film centers on J.D. Vance’s impoverished upbringing and the volatile relationship between his mother Bev (Amy Adams) and his grandmother (Glenn Close), who is known as Mawmaw.
Amy Adams and Glenn Close are stellar actors and I cannot wait to see them in action in Hillbilly Elegy. Since two powerhouse women are leading the cast, some people are expecting the movie to be bringing home the bacon during awards season. If you’re wondering about the likelihood of the film being nominated for an Oscar, then look no further.
Could Hillbilly Elegy win an Oscar?
Obviously, there’s no way of knowing whether or not a film is going to win an Oscar, especially before that film has been widely released. I’m not a fortune teller and I do not regularly chat with Academy members about their movie preferences or decision making. However, there are a few hints that Netflix definitely thinks that Hillbilly Elegy will be a big winner during awards season.
As we’ve previously reported, Netflix movies can be nominated for and win Academy Awards. However, there’s a bit of a catch. In order to qualify for nomination, the film in question must have a minimum seven-day theatrical release in a Los Angeles theater.
Netflix does not do this for all of their films. For instance, a cheesy holiday rom-com like The Princess Switch, a film that has almost no chance at being nominated for any serious film award, will go straight to Netflix without a theatrical release.
Movies are only released theatrically when the streaming platform believes the project has a good chance of winning an award. For example, more serious Netflix original films like Icarus, Roma, and Marriage Story all had limited theatrical releases, and all won Oscars.
Hillbilly Elegy was released in select theaters on November 11 and will premiered on Netflix today. The cast is lead by two acting legends: Glenn Close and Amy Adams.
Amy Adams is one of my favorite actresses. She has demonstrated incredible range in movies like Enchanted, American Hustle, Arrival, Big Eyes, and The Fighter. Adams also stole the show as Camille Preaker in the HBO miniseries Sharp Objects, based on the Gillian Flynn novel of the same name.
Then, there’s the incomparable Glenn Close. A few of her most notable films include The World According to Garp, Hook, The Big Chill, The Natural, Fatal Attraction, and Dangerous Liaisons. Close also voiced Cruella DeVil in 101 Dalmatians, Kala in Tarzan, and Granny in Hoodwinked! So, basically, she narrated my childhood.
So, why are these two actresses indicative of an Oscars campaign? Well, even though Amy Adams has won numerous awards, she has never won an Oscar, despite being nominated six times.
Similarly, Glenn Close has been nominated for an Oscar seven times over the course of her career. Both thespians are known for being able to portray diverse characters, so I’m thinking that Netflix is under the impression that their distinctive performances in Hillbilly Elegy will finally earn both women one of those golden statues.
However, this is all just conjecture. We will have to wait for awards season to see if Hillbilly Elegy will win anything.