18 Days Til Oscar. 18 Nominations For Meryl Streep
Wednesday, February 12, 2014 at 3:30PM Here's a piece of trivia that even people who are clueless about the Oscars can recite: Meryl Streep is the most nominated actor of all time. Sometimes those same people will say she's won the most Oscars but you can't know everything if you don't pay attention. But, any way you come at it, her record is astounding (18 noms / 3 wins)
Today I'm having fun repurposing her bitchy dialogue from August: Osage County and pretending its mockery of her fellow nominees and their (comparatively) puny Oscar histories.
You ever been married nominated before?
...More than once?
[Listening]
Amy: Five times !!!
Judi: Seven
Cate: I used to know the w... six?
Sandra: twice, both times against you, don't you remember?
[Laughing] Should pretty well have it down by now, then."
Will anyone ever catch up to Meryl's record?
It seems impossible. At least in our lifetimes. In addition to being the most acclaimed living actor she's also one of the most prolific with three more movies arriving this year (Into the Woods, The Homesman, and The Giver). Jack Nicholson (12/3) was once neck-and-neck with her Oscar record but petered out with About Schmidt (2002) which was exactly parallel to Meryl's spectacular late-career renaissance which began with The Hours and Adaptation, which eventually restored her to a mainstream popularity she hadn't enjoyed since the early 1980s. Jack has since retired. Streep's nearest working rivals in terms of pure numbers will never catch up. They are: Al Pacino (8/1) last nominated in 1992, Jane Fonda, Dustin Hoffman, and Robert DeNiro (all 7/2) who were last nominated in 1986, 1997 and 2012 respectively, and Judi Dench (7/1) nominated again this year but also retiring. It's very rare to win 7 nominations or more as these people have done. Only 19 actors in the history of the cinema have managed it and they tend to be ultra-iconic figures: Newman, Brando, Hepburn, Davis, Nicholson... that type.
Of the working actors with 6 nominations (which include Streep's two truest contemporaries Jessica Lange and Glenn Close), only Cate Blanchett and maybe Kate Winslet, if she gets her career back on track, look like threats to the records of the upper echelons. But not, we must admit, to Streep's. [Aside: I suspect you're dying to talk about Amy Adams' alarming rise up the charts (5/0), don't. Let's table that discussion for the moment - I promise, we'll get to it!]
Soon you'll be gone, never to return."
Don't start with that!
Related Posts:
Nathaniel's Best Actress Ballot
The Thing I Wrote While Trying to Write a Review of August: Osage County
Best Actress Chart - now with "How Were They Nominated?" Updates
Reader Comments (60)
I see Julia didn't warrant a mention in Actress did you think of her at all.
I see the academy wanting Streep to reach 20,why is Winslet's career not on track,she gave us so much for 16 years if she chooses not to chase the Oscar that is up to her plus she does have 3 kids now,Blanchett is a more likely 10 time nominee to me than Winslet anyway as for Adams if she doesn't win this year her noxt nomination will build momentum for a win,i agree on The Master nomination i have no idea what she was up to.
Such a pleasure to live through Meryl's dominance. Long may she reign.
I'm a bit miffed that she holds this distinction as I think that the bulk of her nominations are undeserved. I would still give her 4 or 5, but 18 is overkill.
My favorite bit of Oscar triviality this year is the parallel Best Actress history of most-nominated Meryl and most-winning Katherine Hepburn. Consider:
After their first Lead Actress win, both had to wait over two decades for their second, which came for a comparatively lightweight role against more acclaimed competition.
The year after their second Lead Actress win, they both came roaring back with a baity, acid-tongued lead role in an adaptation of a recent, acclaimed Broadway play which won the stage actress a Tony.
This won "Kate the Great" her third Best Actress Oscar up against some stiff competition... but The Lion In Winter was far more beloved than August: Osage County (seven Oscar nominations - including Picture, Director, and Screenplay - compared to two), so I guess I can't really say that we're all underestimating Meryl in this year's Lead Actress race. But I love those parallels.
Meryl Streep deserves no more than six nominations. Seven, if we're being really generous.
I'm curious to see what roles the commenters think Streep deserves the nomination (not necessarily the win) for. For me, it's the following: Kramer vs Kramer, Sophie's Choice, Silkwood, The Devil Wears Prada, Adaptation, The Bridges of Madison County and Postcards from the Edge. My outlier votes that I don't think would likely generate debate here would probably be A Cry in the Dark and Julie and Julia, but I'd gladly give those nominations up for a nomination for The Hours instead.
HARSH. -- i think meryl deserved her nominations in 78,79,82,83,85(but for a different movie), 87,88, 90,95, 02. and 06 which means 11 nominations which is still an awful lot and more than anyone else (since K Hepburn probably didn't deserve every 1 of her 12.
Er, that's "my outlier votes that I think would generate debate here would probably be A Cry in the Dark and Julie and Julia..." for clarification.
The fact that Meryl Streep has worked with so my people and made them money without being a diva really helps her cause. Karina Longworth's book is really insightful about Streep's business acumen and ability to avoid the pitfalls experienced by Jane Fonda. Streep's flustered maternal persona is a carefully cultivated one; it endears her to people. Also, now that she is an older Academy member, she doesn't have as many direct rivals as she once had in relatively younger skewing AMPAS. Jennifer Aniston or SJP are more likely to vote for her than, say, Jessica Lange because they never compete for the same roles.
Side Note: Judi Dench's Oscar history also needs an examination. To receive all seven nominations (five in lead race no less) after 60, one must be dong something right.
Side Note 2: Anyone in need of a nomination (Donald Sutherland?) should hitch a ride with Amy Adams. When Amy Adams costars, everyone gets a c̶a̶r̶ nomination. American Hustle, The Master, The Fighter, and The Doubt have resulted in 14 acting nominations!
Don't forget Spacek as a Streep contemporary who also has 6 nominations, but unlike Lange & Close are all leading. Spacek now has a film starting (Boy Choir with Dustin Hoffman & Kathy Bates - what a powerhouse) and a Netflix series to get her some higher profile than her current low one. Also the first person in any category I believe to have the distinction of being in a best pic nominee in each of the last 4 decades. And was the 1st actress to get 4 NYFFC awards... now tied with Streep.
Flickah, I would nominate Streep for 'Kramer vs. Kramer', 'Sophie's Choice', 'Silkwood', and 'The Bridges of Madison County.' And maybe 'Adaptation,' too.
From her generation, I much prefer Jessica Lange, Sissy Spacek, and Anjelica Huston. Perhaps because they haven't been as acclaimed as Streep in my lifetime (I was born in '93) they came as greater revelations to me. "Greatest Living Actress" is a hard title to live up to.
@Mike -- the legacy does indeed get in the way. Even she said so in an interview, where she stated rather ruefully that it took a lot of work to dispel all that on the set because her costars have a lot of preconceptions about her, so it takes a while to get to honest work and connections because her new-to-her costars always see the Legend first.
That said, I think her reputation is mostly deserved. She is an incredibly talented actress and for me, is almost always fascinating to watch even in movies that I find largely forgettable or intolerable. I watched dreck like Before and After, Lions and Lambs, the highly unnecessary Manchurian Candidate remake and Mamma Mia willingly because she's always a worthwhile actress to watch, and is one of the few people who can elevate crap because of her presence and skill. She's a tad overcompensated and overrewarded, but that's not her fault or doing -- it's more a telling indictment of how Hollywood can only have one female "Master" going at one time and have lots of classifications of Master for the men: Nicholson, Pacino, De Niro, Day-Lewis, Hoffmans Dustin and Philip Seymour [RIP] etc.
Flickah - For me, it's Manhattan, The French Lieutenant's Woman, Sophie's Choice, Silkwood, Postcards from the Edge and The Devil Wears Prada.
You can sway me on Adaptation and Kramer vs. Kramer, too, if you try hard, but anything she's got beyond that, especially in recent years for the likes of Music of the Heart, Doubt, The
IronOveracting Lady, Osage County, etc. is ludicrous.@Amir - your list fascinates me and I want to poke at it and read expanded thoughts, but I'll refrain as we're in Nathaniel's guest page and would be extending on his graciously maintained space. If you do have such a detailed post or list somewhere, please link it as I would love to read it!
I do agree that Streep's more recent work reaches into overacting, tic-laden territory. I still find it fascinating to watch, but since the movies that Streep likes to act in don't often intersect with movies I end up loving, I really do just watch for her, so my perspective on her is very much skewed.
I actually think Streep's nomination this year is well deserved. Easily her strongest work since Prada. And I also saw the original August on Broadway so I was shocked at how impressed I was with Meryl.
I think she deserved her nominations in:
78, 79, 81, 82, 83, 85, 88, 95, 98, 06, 09, 11, and now 13. So 13 total.
And I agree with krakray that Sissy Spacek is also her contemporary, though she has a lower profile than Jessica Lange or Glenn Close at the moment.
Nathaniel. I keep seeing you bring it up, and it stumps me every time. Judi Dench retiring? I can't find one link on the web to back this up. I think there may be some confusion because a couple of years ago it was misreported she had gone blind. This article from October 2013 very clearly states Judi's plans to continue.
The Deer Hunter
Kramer Vs Kramer
The French Lieutenant's Woman
Sophie's Choice
Silkwood
Out of Africa/Plenty (deserved for both)
Ironweed
A Cry in the Dark
Bridges of Madison County
One True Thing
Adaptation
Now, for her contemporaries
Glenn Close: 1 (The World According to Garp)
Sissy Spacek: 6 (Badlands, Carrie, 3 Women, Coal Miner's Daughter, Missing, In the Bedroom)
Jessica Lange: Probably none, if I'm being honest.
That said, I rather love Streep's huge nomination total.
I was just thinking today that there's seriously an issue if she can get nominated for Music of the Heart and Julie and Julia. Both of them were jokes of movies in my opinion (at least in terms of Oscars) and no other actress in those parts would've been nominated for them. Plenty of great actors have done solid work in mediocre films and they don't usually get rewarded with Oscar nominations.
I am so happy Meryl got nominated for August. She was simply brilliant in it.
The only nominee I feel is out of place in this field is Amy Adams. Emma Thompson was robbed.
If Amy wins I will kick my TV set in.
Wow, I thought I was the only person on earth who felt Meryl deserved to be nominated for Plenty. I was stunned by her performance in that when I saw it in the theater (in Provo Utah no less).
The only thing that I don't like about Meryl's many, many nominations is that some other actresses didn't get their due, but I can't really blame Meryl herself for that. In fact, I'd say one of the reasons she gets hired for good parts (besides being terrific) is that she's always game to support a movie, no matter how mediocre it might be.
And come on, Jessica Lange in Frances is brilliant work. And I'm one of the few who think she deserved her Oscar for Tootsie. It's hard to come off as hoodwinked and a little dumb, without being a complete moron. Take a look again at either one of them. I hated Jessica in King Kong and fell in love with her in All That Jazz. (There hasn't been a complete change of opinion in my head like that except maybe Madeleine Stowe going from idiiotic in that dumb Kurt Russell/Ray Liotta "thriller" to heartbreaking work in Last Of The Mohicans).
Streep's most questionable nominations are for Doubt, Music of the Heart and Ironweed. Still, she deserved them more than Lange deserved any of her nominations! I am ready for the Lange revival to end.
Close and Spacek are both terrific.
Flickah - No, I haven't written about it at all unfortunately.
And I think you touch on one of the biggest problems I have with Streep these days, in that she doesn't challenge herself at all in comparison with her previous work; and also chooses projects that tend to serve her. In the 21st century, Adaptation., A Prairie Home Companion and Fantastic Mr. Fox are the only projects she's been in that are of any interest to me otherwise.
Jennifer Lawrence will match and probably beat her, if she wants too. She has the talent, a terrific head start (3 already) and unless she totally screws up or takes time off, should be unstoppable.
Just one small gripe, Nathaniel:
which eventually restored her to a mainstream popularity she hadn't enjoyed since the early 1980s.
I believe Streep's popularity began to wane after A Cry in the Dark, 1988, not the early 80's. It didn't pick up again until Bridges of Madison County, 1995, and then began to soar again with The Hours and Adaptation and, of course, Angels in America.
I'd give her Oscar nominations for:
The Deer Hunter (S)
Kramer vs Kramer (S)
The French Lieutenant's Woman
Sophie's Choice
Silkwood
Out of Africa
Ironweed
A Cry in the Dark
The Bridges of Madison County
One True Thing
Adaptation (S)
The Hours
A Prairie Home Companion (S)
Doubt
Julie and Julia
The Iron Lady
August Osage County
13 Lead and 4 Supporting. That's 17 total. I think she'll easily reach twenty, and probably even more.
Uh, do you know something I don't regarding Jack Nicholson? As far as I know he's on an acting hiatus, not offically retired.
I'm with u, Dave. Lange is one of our finest actors. A whole new generation is thrilled by her talent. She deserves every accolade she's getting. And then some.
Jessica should be playing The Witch in ITW. And she would have made a devastating Violet.
From Phillip H
Both of them were jokes of movies in my opinion (at least in terms of Oscars) and no other actress in those parts would've been nominated for them. Plenty of great actors have done solid work in mediocre films and they don't usually get rewarded with Oscar nominations.
Yes and no. I think her Music in the Heart nomination was definitely in part motivated by AMPAS desire to see her equal Hepburn's nomination. But getting nominated for mediocre work happens all the time - and by mediocre, I mean little to no recognition by AMPAS (Elizabeth the Golden Age anyone?)
--***--
When we talk about deserving, though, what do we mean? Do we mean "made my top five?" (that's what my list means) Do we mean "once you remove AMPAS-unlikelies (foreign, too independent, etc) from consideration top five (because the people I have ranking higher than Streep in say 2006 are Sandra Huller, Julia Jentsch, Shareeka Epps, etc)? Or do we mean surpasses a level of quality we'd like to see nominees have (in which case, I'd have her past 20 with things like She Devil, Defending Your Life, and Marvin's Room adding to her haul).
--**--
My 1982 line-up: Streep, Diane Keaton (Shoot the Moon), Sissy Spacek, Rosel Zech (Veronika Voss), Isabelle Huppert (The Trout/Coup de Torchon)
--**--
I'd give Meryl Streep the win for Ironweed
I just love how so many would deny Meryl nominations, in hindsight, over the decades. I believe she deserved EVERY single one of them, and I was an Oscarologist 10 years before her first nomination. If any one of them might be undeserved, that would be 99's Music of the Heart. As for wins? 81, 82, 83, 02, 09, 11. That's right, 2011. All this revisionist history about how she beat more critically acclaimed nominees. Meryl had that one the minute the NY Film Critics handed her that well deserved and arguably, the most important critics award there is. I, for one, am tired of all the "Iron Lady" hate that has exploded over the blogosphere. There, I had my say. And in 2013, she is still deserving of the nomination, though Blanchett and Dench gave the better performances. Now I fully expect to be crucified for saying all this, but so be it. One last thing, she also deserved another nod, in 2002. But we all know who the media had crowned Princess that year (and it wasn't my Julianne Moore). Oh, and let's not forget the years she gave more than one worthy performance, 1985 and 2006.
Cate says: I used to know the w....six?
Anyone a clue what the w.....word could be???
...word.
@brookesboy
Good god Lange would be disastrous in ItW, but I could see her as Violet
Thank you, Patryk. The Iron Lady was a totally deserved win. And I think she should have won for Ironweed.
Ryan, agree to disagree on ITW. But Jessica would bring the regally mischievous air that is all important. Not to mention she's at least as good a singer as Streep and without all the self-consciousness.
brookesboy -- jessica lange sings? what? i guess i missed that movie or tv episode. But i'd be shocked if she had a better singing voice than Meryl. Meryl's voice is just so gorgeous and nuanced... she understands acting through song. loved her singing ever since Ironweed.
Patryk -- i am glad streep fans don't run the world cuz that is way too many wins. haha. If I ran the world Streep would have 4 wins (79.82.83.06) which is already quite generous but in the other years someone else was better even though she often did great work.
Arkaan - agreed that the getting nominated for mediocre stuff is hardly a streep-specific problem. But I think even her biggest fans, if they're being honest with themselves, would know that a good portion of her nominations -- even if the performance is very good -- are only nominations because she's Meryl Streep. That carries its own default weight. Other actors have to work a lot harder for people to think "oh, they deserve praise for this!"
Interesting concept on the deserved/undeserved nominations, so I figured I'd chime in (with the caveat that I haven't seen A:OC yet):
Doubt, Adaptation (supp), The Bridges of Madison County, Death Becomes Her, Postcards from the Edge, Out of Africa, Silkwood, Sophie's Choice, Kramer vs. Kramer, The Deer Hunter
So that still leaves 10, which is a tidy sum. I think many of her nominations have been by default. Not knowing the strength of all the fields she was up against, it's possible I would've gone for her in lesser roles. Who really can tell? It is a shame, though, that she seems to be coasting as of late.
I honestly believe Amy Adams has the best shot of any working actress, but not primary from leading roles. I could see her working well into old age and racking up supporting nod ever five years or so along the way. The Academy clearly loves her and she has the kind of warm personality that could transcend eras.
I think we could live with one overrated, over-rewarded actress who, at 64, shows no signs of slowing down and is still a major box office draw.
MDA -- NICHOLSON. when someone has only made 3 movies in the past 10 years (and the last of those 4 years ago) and they are 77 years old, they have retired.
Luke -- DENCH. after doing some more searches i see that she has clarified and now directly stated that she won't be retiring so i'll fix it... but that was the word for awhile. or at least the rumor.
yshark -- this post was meant as a celebration of Meryl's record but the comments seemed to have turned it to something else. Trust that I meant it as "wow"... not that people don't know her record is a "wow" but I sometimes think people don't properly know how much of a wow it is -- like basically 3 times the attention of most of the most lauded actors of any era. I mean even the major household name icons of cinema have like half of her record Oscar wise (and she's not done yet... probably... though you never know when it's someone last nomination)
also i'm sad nobody liked my joke about turning her dinner scene into nomination mockery. I shoulda done it as a video with cutaways.
Nathaniel, I agree. At the same time, since some of those nominations are among my favourites (Ironweed, A Cry in the Dark, Bridges of Madison County) it's hard to begrudge them.
arkaan -- no way was Bridges one of those. Anyone would've been nominated for that performance (agreed that the other two were too small or unloved as films to net a nomination for someone else but damn she's worthy in both of them.) . Bridges was the first time that I remember people *seriously* taking the concept of 'it's time for a third statue!'. I mean people said it before then but Bridges was the first time it felt like it could happen (at least for a few months before the other heavyweights arrived)
@ Nathaniel I know you love Meryl and the post was meant to celebrate her noms. As far as some of the comments are concerned, I feel it's unfair to blame her for the kind of roles and movies that come her way. It's not like she choses not to work with great directors, you know? It's disappointing that even with her talent and box office clout, we don't have young interesting filmmakers lining up to make movies with her.
I think Meryl deserved all the nominations except perhaps one for Mussic of Hearts. Instead she should have received a nomination for Plenty.
I confess to not being able to assess the earlier Meryl noms. I have seen most of her work, but not most of her competition. I will stick to noma from Bridges on, which I feel to be in more solid ground to judge.
1995 - Love her, Love Bridges, Love Clint, Love all the nominees that year, 5-way tie and ponies and rainbows for everybody! World Peace while we're at it!! If pressed to pick, I'd go with Sharon Stone in Casino.
1998 - One True Thing. Unseen, but given the two Titanic competitors in Fernanda Montenegro's Dora and Cate Blanchett's Queen Elizabeth I, I find it hard to believe she'd be a contender for a win. She'd have to be worse than Gwyneth to be ultimately undeserving of a nom, so I find it unlikely.
1999 - Music of the Heart. Undeserved and a very week nom in an otherwise strong line-up. Swank's Teena Brandon and the Bening's Carolyn Burnham could dwarf the competition, but McTeer and Moore's noms are quite respectable, leaving poor Meryl in Music of the Heart looking like a lazy unmerited pick.
2002 - Adaptation. Great performance, great movie, very deserved nom, but CZJ's Velma Kelly OWNS that Oscar. And she'd kill to keep it, so good luck trying to regift it! ;)
2006 - Devil Wears Prada. Three-way tie!!! Ponies and Rainbows and that hazey glow that emanates naturally from Diana Ross's skin!! Cruz, Dench and Streep FTW!! Mirren and Winslet round up a VERY respectable line-up. At gunpoint, I'd pick Dench's Barbara Covett.
2008 - Doubt. I'd give her the win. Love this performance to bits! I know it's not a popular opinion, but I just think she's brilliant! Funny, broad and engaging, it feels theatrical, but in a good way (some may say campy). And I just don't like any of her competitors. Leo and Hathaway were fine, Winslet was better in Revolutionary Road and Angelina Jolie was all kinds of horrible in Changeling. I mean, people who accuse Meryl of overacting in Doubt should watch Jolie and reconsider!
2009 - Julie and Julia. Adorable fluff, but nomination material, I think. The deserving winner would have been Gabby Sidibe, with Mulligan as a runner up. Overall a super awful line-up, with Mirren nommed for The Last Station and Sandra winning for her career and a great year.
2011 - Iron Lady. I feel tempted to say that I will wait for Katie to see it so we can all finally discuss it, but I reckon that'd be qualified as trolling! I am not a big fan of the movie, or of Meryl in it. I am a big fan of the Milk Snatcher, though, I must confess. She deserves a proper movie. 2011 was also a pretty dire line-up. I would have given it to either Davis, who's my favorite performance of the 5, or Close, as compensation for Fatal Attraction and Dangerous Liaisons (I quite like Close and McTeer in Albert Nobbs, but let's be honest, it's not on the same league).
2013 - August: Osage County. I don't hate her performance, like some seem to. I thiink the movie's problems stem from the directors inability to stablish a proper tone and finetune the performances to it. Julia Roberts is the deserving Best Actress nominee from the movie, not Meryl. Julianne Nicholson, the deserving Supporting Actress. Meryl has a great scene at the swing (the boots scene), but I don't like her at all in the dinner table scene. I'd rate it an undeserved nomination, but it doesn't matter because Cate Blanchett is SO much better than anyone else nominated in any of the four acting categories, this isn't really a contest! It's Cate and the also-rans!
So it'd be roughly 1 undisputed win, 2 ties, among 5 nominations in 18 years, that's quite respectable! Go Meryl!
Who is the milk snatcher
So glad that I'm lucky enough to be in Streep's age group to travel thru the cinema
witnessing her brilliance over 40 years with more movie excellence to come.
Thanks for the years of unprecedented performances to amaze & delight...
I wouldn't begrudge any of Meryl's nominations except for Music of the Heart. And I feel she should have won for Devil Wears Prada (best supporting, not main actress), Julie and Julia (there's a difference between fluffy and nuanced comedic) and A Cry in the Dark or maybe Bridges or Silkwood (she was terrific in the trio of movies)...minus her Iron Lady win. So 5 wins, 17 noms for me. I don't know why some think she tends to 'overact' these days or no longer stretches her acting muscle compared to the 80s. For better or worse, I only see one woman (now in her twilight years) loosening up and having more fun with her craft, and maybe we've become so acquainted with all her gestures, expressions and flourishes over the years that nothing coming from her seem to surprise us anymore than say the likes of Kidman, Blanchett and maybe Chastain and Jlaw. It happens to a lot of actresses I've admired from Jessica Lange (I can name, easily, 7 to 8 common Jessica tics and expressions) to Pfeifer (boy,I truly miss her and I always observe how she moves her luscious lips when she's scared or confused or agitated - so familiar with them). My only wish is that Meryl stops acting for 2 or 3 years and maybe we 'll miss her more,
I still do not understand how Amy Adam can score 5 nominations? how?
MERYL STREEP
RANKING HER 18 NOMINATIONS, BEST TO WORST (though I love them all!)
1. Sophie's Choice (1982)
2. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
3. A Cry in the Dark (1988)
4. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
5. One True Thing (1998)
6. The Bridges of Madison County (1995)
7. Adaptation. (2002)
8. Silkwood (1983)
9. The Deer Hunter (1978)
10. The Iron Lady (2011)
11. Out of Africa (1985)
12. The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)
13. Julie & Julia (2009)
14. Ironweed (1987)
15. Postcards from the Edge (1990)
16. August: Osage County (2013)
17. Music of the Heart (1999)
18. Doubt (2008)
UNDERRATED STREEP - 5 PERFORMANCES THE ACADEMY FORGOT
1. Marvin's Room (1996)
2. Death Becomes Her (1992)
3. She-Devil (1989)
4. The Hours (2002)
5. Defending Your Life (1991)
A Tribute I Did for Meryl 2 years Ago- Meryl Streep: A Tribute to 17 Oscar Nominations- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gODmehhKgFk
By the way- how do you post links to clips and websites on here? Every time I try to use the coding, it doesn't work.