Getting ready for the Oscars? They’re a long way away, you know, an extra two weeks in the schedule because of the March 2, 2014 date. That means the Oscar buzzed movies are going to start pushing their release dates well into December. Those movies have to get through February, when the Olympics are going to be marketed through the roof.
Knowing this, The Weinstein Company, HQ of all Oscar activity, has picked its Academy Award front runner and moved it. “August: Osage County” has had such great reactions that it’s moving from October to Christmas Day. The John Wells-directed adaptation of the award winning play stars Meryl Streep, a natural for Best Actress consideration. Julia Roberts co-stars, and those who’ve seen it are impressed with her performance. (If she’s not strident and self-referential, this will be a comeback of major proportions.)
Others in the film include Juliette Lewis, Ewan McGregor, Dermot Mulroney, Benedict Cumberbatch, Margo Martindale, and Abigail Breslin. Come on! It’s already a Best Picture nominee. But seriously, it does look like “AOC” will get a serious push. The only problem– and everyone should have this problem– is that TWC has like four or five Best Actresses with Nicole Kidman, Oprah Winfrey, and Noemi Harris in the mix too for “Grace of Monaco,” “The Butler,” and “Mandela.”
Meantime, word on “The Butler” — due in August– is that tweaking and editing continue to make it perfect. One of the many actors who play a cameo may be getting cut out of the story. If so, I hope we’ll see them on the DVD.
