Tag: Orange Is the New Black

Would The Supremes Have Gotten Oscar Love?

The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat hopes to find love from home viewers in its Hulu debut this weekend. The fact that it’s not in theaters came as an unexpected announcement from Searchlight Pictures (under the Disney umbrella) a few weeks back. Based on a 2013 novel from Edward Kelsey Moore, the decades spanning drama features Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Sanaa Lathan, and Uzo Aduba as lifelong friends. Costars include Mekhi Phifer, Julian McMahon, Vondie Curtis-Hall, and Russell Hornsby. Tina Mabry directs.

On paper, The Supremes looks like the type of crowdpleaser that might have appealed to awards voters. However, Searchlight went the streaming route. The strategy makes more sense as of the past few days. Earl’s sports a so-so 68% Rotten Tomatoes score at press time. Critics are kind to the performances of Ellis-Taylor (a Supporting Actress nominee for King Richard in 2021), Lathan, and Aduba (Emmy winner for Orange is the New Black).

Yet the reviews likely would have prevented this from generating much Oscar chatter. Searchlight also has other contenders that they’ll focus on. This includes the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown with Timothée Chalamet, Nightbitch with a potential Academy bait turn from Amy Adams, and A Real Pain which has already received Supporting Actor talk for Kieran Culkin.

If anyone had a shot from Supremes, it would be Ellis-Taylor. She would appear to have another bite at the apple with the upcoming Nickel Boys (also based on a bestseller) in the supporting field. As I always say, my Oscar Prediction posts will continue. They will not continue with this picture, per Searchlight.

Oscars: The Case of Danielle Brooks in The Color Purple

As we do every year on this here blog, Oscar nominations lead to my Case Of series. What are they? Glad you asked. These are 35 posts covering the nominees for Picture, Director, and the four acting contests. For each one, I give you the case for the movie/director/actor winning and the case against it with a verdict tidying it up. It’s like a trial, but no one goes to prison.

It began with the ten BP contenders and now it alternates alphabetically between the hopefuls in the five other big races. Today we arrive at our second performer in Best Supporting Actress and that’s Danielle Brooks in Blitz Bazawule’s The Color Purple. Let’s get to it!

Previous Oscar Acting Nominations:

None

The Case for Danielle Brooks:

The role of Sofia in other Color Purple iterations earned Oprah Winfrey an Oscar nomination nearly four decades ago and nabbed Brooks a Tony nod when she played it on Broadway almost a decade back. Her showy role was expected to generate awards attention and she got in at the four highest profiles precursors (Globes, Critics Choice, SAG, BAFTA).

The Case Against Danielle Brooks:

The Orange is the New Black cast member lost the Globe and Critics Choice to Da’Vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers. Furthermore, Purple has not been the Academy player that Warner Bros. hoped for. Brooks marks the picture’s sole nomination.

The Verdict:

Before Purple underperformed on the circuit, Brooks sat atop the projections of most prognosticators (include this one). She’s second or third now – definitely behind Randolph and probably Emily Blunt in Oppenheimer.

My Case Of posts will continue with Robert De Niro in Killers of the Flower Moon…

The Prodigy Box Office Prediction

Orion Pictures hopes horror fans turn out next weekend with the release of The Prodigy. The fright fest casts “Orange Is the New Black” star Taylor Schilling as a mom who thinks her young son might be possessed by a demon. Jackson Robert Scott, most known as Georgie (the kid who got his arm ripped off by Pennywise in It), plays the boy. Nicholas McCarthy directs.

As has been said many times on this blog, this genre always has the possibility to surprise with a larger than anticipated opening. There’s no direct competition for horror watchers, but there’s three other pics debuting that should all premiere with bigger numbers (The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, What Men Want, Cold Pursuit).

The studio would be fortunate to see a rollout like 2016’s The Boy, which managed nearly $11 million for its start. I don’t see it happening and I’ll project it makes a bit over half that figure.

The Prodigy opening weekend prediction: $6.1 million

For my The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part prediction, click here:

The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part Box Office Prediction

For my What Men Want prediction, click here:

What Men Want Box Office Prediction

For my Cold Pursuit prediction, click here:

Cold Pursuit Box Office Prediction