Why King Richard Will Win Best Picture
'Tis t-minus 9 days until the Oscars, and a field of 10 films-- the highest number since 2011! --are ramping up their campaigns in a last-minute push for the top prize of them all, Best Picture. The biggest award has the potential to be either one of the most anticlimactic or most surprising result in recent years. The former is true, because really only two films have won any of the prizes on the awards circuit, and one of those [Jane Campion's The Power Of The Dog] is a notable step ahead in the sweepstakes. However, no frontrunner is a traditional winner, nor is without its detractors; those facts, as well as the Oscars' less predictable preferential voting system means that no nominee can be counted out of the race. Spotlight's and Moonlight's back-to-back upsets in 2016 and 2017, and Parasite's stunner in 2020 taught us to expect the unexpected, so we're here to give fans of all 10 nominees reason to believe on Sunday the 27th.
The next Best Picture nominee in our preview series: King Richard, directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, and produced by star lead actor Will Smith.
Even the most sports-averse among you will be familiar with Serena and Venus Williams. The Williams sisters arrived on the tennis scene in the late 90s and early 2000s, and ushered in a completely unrivaled era of dominance in the sport. Their legacy, and perhaps Serena's in particular, has transcended the world of sports; not only because their sheer prowess on the trophy circuit been unmatched at any point, but because of the impact of seeing two black women from Compton uproot a sport so predominantly played and won by whites. What does all this have to do with someone named "King Richard"? Well, the sisters' father Richard Williams was the driving force behind their career, and early on, became an extremely controversial figure due to his frequent, oft-brash public appearances, and a parenting and coaching style that many people deemed unorthodox or even problematic.
This film tells Venus and Serena's story, but also importantly gives more depth to their much-beleaguered father. Its success at being a piece of art beyond the simple tried-and-true "sports movie" is thanks in no small part to a masterful performance from Will Smith, who portrays Richard at his most unapologetic, domineering, confident; but also at his more vulnerable, humble and humbled moments. Smith is the heavy frontrunner to win his first ever, long-awaited Best Actor Oscar, and that might just be the ticket to greater success for this film. After all, the correlation between Best Actor nominees and Best Picture nominees has arguably never been stronger. 19 of the last 25 Best Actor nominees also saw their film nominated for Best Picture, and it's not a stretch to say many of them (Joker, Vice, Bohemian Rhapsody come to mind) likely wouldn't have gotten the nod if it wasn't riding the coattails of its lead actor.
But in addition, just like with the last movie we discussed, Belfast, though King Richard hasn't grabbed its own big win yet, it's been nominated for all the right awards. It won top honors at many a film festival, and nabbed Best Picture nominations at the Golden Globes, Producers Guild Awards, and Critics' Choice Awards. Having your name in the awards circuit for that long will always make you a contender. And that plus an inspiring true story helmed by a dynamic, perhaps Oscar-winning acting performance...well, that makes you a legitimate contender.
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