Oscars 2024: The Best Actor Nominations and The Active Life of The Master Performers
With the Grammys, BAFTAs, SAGs, and the People’s Choice Awards gone, now it’s the time for the biggest and the most prestigious award of the year, the 96th Annual Academy Awards. For the Oscars 2024, the Best Actor race seems to be among the most competitive categories, with the names of some of the most skilled actors in the nominations. With 2023 delivering memorable, powerful performances from Cillian Murphy, Jeffrey Wright, Paul Giamatti, Bradley Cooper, and Colman Domingo to the audience, it’s yet to be seen who wins the golden statuette this year.
Prepping for the role…
For the unforgettable role, your favorite actor had to prep a lot. Let’s take a look at what the above-mentioned actors did to deserve a position in the nomination beating others.
Colman Domingo in Rustin
In the movie Rustin, Domingo blew the mind with his strong acting skills as Bayard Rustin, the advisor to Martin Luther King Jr. The way he portrayed the emotions of the man on-screen while dedicating his life to the quest for human rights, racial equality, and worldwide democracy made a great impact on the minds of one and all. To get into the shoes of the famous political activist, Domingo spent about five months watching documentary footage and studying the vocal patterns and mannerisms of Rustin. He also delved into the organizer’s writings.
Bradley Cooper in Maestro
Often called a versatile actor and for good reasons, Bradley Cooper once again mesmerized the audience with his portrayal of the renowned conductor and composer, Leonard Bernstein. Cooper completely immersed himself in the life of the longtime conductor, TV personality, and creator of landmark musicals and symphonies to get into the skin of the character. While his physical transformation as the man leaves you in awe, you feel the utmost respect for Cooper as he goes far in capturing the behavior and mannerisms of Bernstein.
Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer
Nolan’s Oppenheimer is such a movie that is etched in the memory of cinema lovers forever. And the driving force? It’s Cillian Murphy. The man went to great lengths to look convincing as the noted physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. Calling the ‘’father of the atomic bomb’’ ‘’the most important man who ever lived’’, Murphy listened to the recordings of the lectures of Oppenheimer to study him in detail. He spent months prepping for the role while taking walks on the beach and even learned to speak Dutch so that he could mirror the man while lecturing in the language. To capture the physique of the physicist, he even lost 28 pounds!
Jeffrey Wright in American Fiction
Cord Jefferson’s satire ‘’American Fiction’’ is based on Percival Everett’s novel Erasure. The movie tells the story of Monk, the Black author, who is basically a struggling author frustrated with White perceptions of Black life. It’s a hilarious movie that confronts the obsession of the culture with lessening people to outrageous stereotypes very subtly. In an interview last year, Jeffrey Wright (playing the lead) said, ‘’…In fact, in my career, I don’t recall another film that I have done with such a complex, nuanced portrait of a family. I have never been asked to play that. As we were doing it, I said, ‘Wow, I have never gotten to play these notes before’.’’
Paul Giamatti in The Holdovers
Teaming up with director Alexander Payne in The Holdovers, Paul Giamatti gave a commendable performance as the classics professor Paul Hunham who teaches at a pre-school in 1970. While talking about his performance, Giamatti said, ‘’Most of it was pretty familiar to me’’. ‘’I had teachers like this guy. I think those schools are different now, but I had teachers that were the sort of strict disciplinarians like this’’.
About The Active Life of These Oscar-Nominated Actors
If you want to know about hot workout looks or what these popular actors do to have that drool-worthy body, keep reading.
Looking at his chiseled body even at this age, you can’t help but go crazy about the 54-year-old. Whether in bold colored suits, quirky printed layers, or basic sleeveless tank tops, the man looks perfect in everything. Waking up at 6:00 am, Colman Domingo goes running and relies on quality food like proper bacon and eggs, a whole avocado with kimchi and an egg on it. As for working out, he mostly likes to do that anytime anywhere. He is largely into stretching, lifting, running, and Pilates.
Other than those dreamy blue eyes, Cooper sports a perfect physique. Oh, the Sexiest Man Alive does a lot to achieve that kind of a body. He uses a program called the 3-2-1 to get into a mind-boggling shape. It starts with a fitness workout, moves to a muscle mass workout, and ends with a toning workout. With eggs, chicken, turkey, and protein smoothies, the man is into lean protein. Though mostly seen in tank tops and fitness shorts, the ‘full-sleeve fitness t-shirt combined with loose-fit workout shorts, accessorized with a baseball cap and black shades’ look is a favorite of many.
Just from his everyday activity, Murphy opts to have a slim physique and a tone-up. The exercise routine for Oppenheimer included dips, pull-ups, and push-ups combined with ab-training and cardio. The intermediate level, 3-day-a-week program made sure of short but intense sessions to get the best outcome. The main principle was to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. To get in shape, nutrition was a very important part. With the right diet, it helped him get a solid, lean frame with nice cuts, shapes, and lines in the right area. The guy looks the best in a premium polyester sleeveless active t-shirt and matching shorts.
Though much is not known about the active life of the American Fiction actor, those big muscles and perfect body that every man would love to sport show that he is into gymming. Once seen in a white t-shirt and a pair of black fitness trousers in the gym, Jeffrey Wright gave major fitness goals to all the workout lovers who consider him the best. By the way, have you checked out the surfing pictures of the man in printed beach shorts and a black sleeveless tank? They are something. The 58-year-old looked cooler than ever!
A well-known actor in Tinseltown, to remain fit and healthy, Giamatti follows a mindful, clean vegan diet. It consists of seeds, nuts, legumes, bread, grains, vegetables, and fruits. The man is into yoga and exercise. While yoga helps him with his immunity and flexibility, working out helps him build strength. Once having gained weight, he has now successfully shed 15 pounds. There are plenty of people who take Giamatti’s weight loss as motivation. It neither involves a strict diet and a rigorous workout routine nor any expensive surgeries, just the basics. Remember Paul’s black tracksuit look?
The Oscars 2024 will take place on March 10th at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, LA. While last time it was Brendan Fraser for The Whale, it will be interesting to see who takes the award home this time, beating other equally talented contenders. Other than celebrity wins and speeches, there will also be jaw-dropping performances. Names like Jon Batiste, Becky G, and Billie Eilish are on the list of the finalized performers for Oscars 2024. Excited?