This article is part of a directory: The Oscars 2023 Complete Guide: Winners & Where To Watch Every Best Picture Nominee
Table of contents

The Oscars nominated Andrea Riseborough for Lead Actress for her performance in To Leslie, but her grassroots campaign may have violated Academy guidelines. Riseborough is an actress who has been working in film and television since 2005, including a role in the Best Picture winner Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). She had a robust 2022, appearing in films including Matilda the Musical, Amsterdam, Please Baby Please, and To Leslie, which began its Oscar campaign in early January to nab the actress a nomination right under the wire.

However, according to Puck, this nomination may have violated the Academy's eligibility guidelines for consideration. Reportedly, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is currently investigating the film, which follows an alcoholic who wins the lottery and proceeds to lose all her winnings, and will bring up the matter during next week's board of governors meeting. They would be considering whether the film's viral campaign, which included endorsements from many major stars, constitutes "lobbying," as only a certain amount of direct contact with voting members is allowed, in an effort to avoid controversies like those that have recently plagued the Golden Globes awarding body the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Related: Angela Bassett's Oscar Nomination Breaks An MCU Trend - But Will She Win?

Riseborough's To Leslie Oscar Nomination Controversy Explained

To Leslie Oscar Nominated movie star Andrea Riseborough

One of the reasons Riseborough's nomination for To Leslie was so surprising was the fact that the film has had very little traction this awards season. It was anticipated that the fifth Lead Actress slot would go to someone like Viola Davis for The Woman King or Danielle Deadwyler for Till. Riseborough's nomination also meant that Golden Globe nominees including Olivia Colman (Empire of Light), Lesley Manville (Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris), Margot Robbie (Babylon), Anya Taylor-Joy (The Menu), and Emma Thompson (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande) also wouldn't get a shot at the Oscar gold.

The way To Leslie pulled off its surprise nomination was a last-minute campaign that saw director Michael Morris' wife Mary McCormack (Deep Impact, In Plain Sight) reach out to as many famous friends as possible to arrange private screenings of the film and launch a social media campaign. The stars who were hosted at screenings or shared their praise for Riseborough online included Iron Man star Gwyneth Paltrow, Friends icon Jennifer Aniston, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery's Edward Norton, and six-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams. Their overwhelming support for the film during the final week of nomination voting seems to have pushed the Academy to officially announce Riseborough as one of the candidates for Lead Actress alongside Blonde's Ana de Armas, Tár's Cate Blanchett, Everything Everywhere All At Once's MIchelle Yeoh, and The Fabelmans' Michelle Williams.

It remains to be seen if the Academy finds To Leslie's campaign in violation of the rules for The Oscars. While it would be nearly unprecedented for them to change their nomination after the fact, the awards body has been working hard to avoid falling into similar controversies as the HFPA, which ended up in such hot water in recent years that the 2022 Golden Globes weren't even televised. However, the critics who gave To Leslie a Certified Fresh 98 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes would seem to agree that Riseborough is deserving of her nomination, so the actress is worthy of the nomination should the Academy allow her to keep it.

More: Why The Batman Received The Weirdest 2023 Oscars Snub

Source: Puck