The Tom Hanks Challenge

by Jason Adams

Last night in the middle of telling us about the forthcoming Academy Museum the actor Tom Hanks, father to Chet Haze, started joking about Scarlett Johansson operating an orbital sander. Nothing like a good orbital sander gag. And pivoting the gag over to ScarJo's plus one slash the head-writer of Saturday Night Live, Hanks continued:

"Brad Pitt was on the roof working with his shirt off. As was Colin Jost. And dude, that was no contest."

Is it no contest, though? Needless to say, given my brain's far reaching and encyclopedic thirst archives, I had an immediate flash of that time that Colin Jost got photographed at the beach taking off his wetsuit in September of 2018 (more here), and the immediate question presented itself...

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Fourth Timers: Brad, Kathy, Saoirse, Joaquin, and the Zeéeeee

Four days till Oscar.

This season brings us multiple four-timers. It's round quatro for a full 25% of our acting nominees: Brad Pitt, Renée Zellweger, Saoirse Ronan, Joaquin Phoenix, and Kathy Bates. They're all on their fourth nomination for acting (though Brad has additional nominations for producing).

Let’s rank their 20 nominated performances for fun after the jump, shall we? Yes, let's...

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Brad & Jen

Between all the long-time gone Oscar nominees and Brad Pitt & Jennifer Aniston's double win reunion of sorts at the SAG Awards, we really have been time-travelling this awards season! 

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26th Annual SAG Awards

by Nathaniel R

It's SAG night. Let's jump right in...

Christina Applegate got here SAG card in the 70s on an indie film. She doesn't remember what it was (yeah, right) but everyone was "really really high". Cynthia Erivo played a shepherd -- "Everyone lauded my performance." she was hooked at five years old. Eugene Levy dreamed of being the next Mr Whipple but goes on and on in a funny bit. They are actors! (We always love that corny intro.)

Levy and (hot/gay) Son present Male Actor, Comedy Series for which, inexplicably, neither of them is nominatd. The statue goes to awards magnet Tony Shalhoub in Marvelous Mrs Maisel

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An Awards Night in New York

by Murtada Elfadl

Award events where the winners have already been announced have a particular way about them. The speeches are mostly prepared before, and the winners  - or their publicists and the people behind their movies - have a say in who gets to present them with the award. Last night the New York Film Critics Circle presented their 2019 awards and here are some of the presenter / winner pairings and why perhaps they’ve been chosen.

Yahya Abdul Mateen / Lupita Nyong’o…. He played her dad in flashbacks in Us

Claire Denis / Mati Diop …. Diop was in Denis’ 35 Shots of Rum...

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