Out this Labor Day weekend and not expected to make much of a box office splash is the historical crime drama By Any Means. It has quiet word-of-mouth and seems generic enough that I called it By All Means in my box office prediction post for it. Two or three days passed before I realized I had the wrong title. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Wahlberg, Nicole Beharie, Josh Lucas, David Strathairn, and Giancarlo Esposito are among cast members.

To be fair, the reviews aren’t bad with 67% on Rotten Tomatoes and 56 on Metacritic. And perhaps it’ll bring in a larger than expected adult crowd over the holiday weekend. However, this was never seen as an awards player. That is… until a few days ago.

Enter Diane Warren. Oscar pundits know the name well. The prolific songwriter has been nominated 17 times for her original songs without a victory to show for it. That’s the most at bats without a home run. The Academy did give her an honorary statue in 2022. It was announced that Warren is behind the title track for Any, performed by the Isley Brothers and David Kushner. Warren currently stands at nine nominated tracks in a row dating back to 2017. Simply put, history indicates “By Any Means” could by all means become the 10th in succession. Once again, a win could be elusive. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…