Oscars alert: Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor is a ‘a beacon of determined grace’ in ‘Origin’

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor finally received the long-overdue recognition she deserved in 2022 when she landed her first-ever Oscar nomination. That bid came for Best Supporting Actress for the sports biopic “King Richard,” which charted Richard Williams (Will Smith), the father of Venus and Serena Williams, helping his daughters as they begin their tennis careers. Ellis-Taylor portrayed the sisters’ mother and Smith’s on-screen wife Oracene “Brandy” Price in a fierce performance that saw Brandy go toe-to-toe with the titular King Richard.

Ellis-Taylor lost that Oscar race to Ariana DeBose for “West Side Story” but it was a nomination that marked a distinguished career across film, TV, and theatre. And Ellis-Taylor could continue that success this year with another Oscar nomination… this time for Best Actress with Ava DuVernay‘s “Origin.”

The Neon film, which will be released in the USA on December 8, sees Ellis-Taylor as real-life writer Isabel Wilkerson as she embarks on a global investigation in order to write the nonfiction book “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.” The film features Vera Farmiga, Audra McDonald, and Ellis-Taylor’s “King Richard” co-star Jon Bernthal. However, it looks set to be Ellis-Taylor’s film through and through.

Currently, Ellis-Taylor is outside of our five predicted Oscar nominees for Best Actress: Emma Stone (“Poor Things”), Lily Gladstone (“Killers of the Flower Moon”), Carey Mulligan (“Maestro”), Sandra Hüller (“Anatomy of a Fall”), and Margot Robbie (“Barbie”). However, there is still a way forward for Ellis-Taylor to reap a second nomination.

Firstly, she is receiving stellar notices. Below, is just a sample of the rave reviews

Carlos Aguilar (The Playlist) declared: “In Ellis-Taylor, the director found a beacon of determined grace. As the sorrow-stricken Wilkerson, the Oscar-nominated actress (‘King Richard’) exudes monumental gravitas through which we understand that her character’s pursuit for truth goes beyond mere professional curiosity but is instead fueled by an unwavering conviction.”

Peter Debruge (Variety) observed: “The way DuVernay directs it, ‘Origin’ is a swirling tornado of ideas. Watching Ellis-Taylor put them together is like witnessing Russell Crowe do higher math in ‘A Beautiful Mind’ or seeing detectives in a David Fincher movie standing before a bulletin board full of clues, panting, ‘It all means something!’ Here, Isabel proclaims, ‘The interconnectedness, that is my point!’ at a family picnic.”

Lovia Gyarkye (The Hollywood Reporter) noted: “Ellis-Taylor, a truly remarkable actress, works with a quiet intensity, fleshing out a portrait of a Black woman trying to find avenues for her grief. Flashbacks to Brett and Isabel’s courtship humanize their relationship, giving life to a love and a partnership prematurely cut off.”

Secondly, she was just nominated for an Oscar. Plenty of performers find themselves quickly landing a second nomination shortly after the first one — the afterglow effect. Robbie was nominated for Best Actress in 2018 for “I, Tonya” before securing a Best Supporting Actress nomination in 2020 for “Bombshell.” Stone was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 2015 for “Birdman” before snagging a Best Actress win in 2017 for “La La Land” and another Best Supporting Actress bid in 2019 for “The Favourite.” Jessica Chastain garnered a Best Supporting Actress nomination herself in 2012 for “The Help” and landed a Best Actress bid a year later in 2013 for “Zero Dark Thirty.” She later won Best Actress in 2022 for “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.”

Thirdly, this category often includes a surprise nomination. We Oscarologists spend our time debating who may or may not be nominated and predicted lineups but, more often than not, a surprise nomination catches us out completely. Andrea Riseborough was nominated earlier this year for “To Leslie,” Penélope Cruz was nominated in 2022 for “Parallel Mothers,” Yalitza Aparicio was nominated in 2019 for “Roma,” Charlotte Rampling was nominated in 2016 for “45 Years,” and Marion Cotillard was nominated in 2015 for “Two Days, One Night.” These are all great performances but most pundits in these years predicted another actress would get in over these names. Stone, Gladstone, and Mulligan feel like locks but Hüller and Robbie could drop out and be replaced by a number of contenders on the precipice. Including Ellis-Taylor.

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