OSCARS PREVIEW
See predictions and which nominees have local ties
The Oscars may be happening in Hollywood, but there will be a very loud cheering section right here in Dayton.
Contenders in both the Best Supporting Actress category and the Best Supporting Actor category have local ties.
Woody Harrelson, a 1979 graduate of Lebanon High School, earned his third Oscar nomination for playing Chief Willoughby in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.”
Oakwood-raised actress Allison Janney, a former Miami Valley School student, is up for the supporting actress prize for her role as LaVona Harding, figure skater Tonya Harding’s mother, in “I,Tonya.”
Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the 90th annual Academy Awards will be broadcast beginning at 8 p.m. tonight, Sunday, March 4.
A win for Harrelson or Janney, a recent addition to the Dayton Region’s Walk of Fame, would mark the first time someone with Dayton-area connections won a major acting Oscar.
And if that happens, Dayton will be on a roll of sorts.
Last year’s Best Picture Oscar went to “Moonlight,” which featured the work of Hannah Beachler, a graduate of Wright State University and Centerville High School.
Beachler was the production designer for Marvel’s recently released blockbuster “Black Panther.”
Janney, the Ashley’s Pastry Shop-loving star of CBS’s “Mom” often speaks of her Dayton upbring and her parents, Macy and Jervis Janney, in interviews.
“It is very exciting,” Macy Janney, an Oakwood resident, said. “We are hoping for the best for her.”
Macy Janney, a New York native who worked there a few years as an actress, said she strived to expose her children to the arts.
Allison Janney studied at the Dayton Ballet.
Her first role on stage was Noah Claypole in “Oliver Twist” at Miami Valley School, where she started honing her singing voice.
“We will cheer from here,” said Macy Janney, who saw “I, Tonya” recently at the Neon movie theater in downtown Dayton.
With wins at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Golden Globes for this same role, Janney is considered the front-runner for the best supporting actress Academy Award.
The other nominees for best supporting actress are: Mary J. Blige in “Mudbound,” Leslie Manville in “Phantom Thread,” Laurie Metcalf in “Lady Bird” and Octavia Spencer in “The Shape of Water.”
Harrelson has come a long way since his days singing and acting in plays at Lebanon High and being named “class flirt.”
Known for his role as Woody on the 1980s hit series “Cheers,” Harrelson had roles in “White Men Can’t Jump,” “Natural Born Killers,” “No Country for Old Men” and the HBO movie “Game Change.”
In 2010, he received an best supporting role nomination for his role in “The Messenger.” He was nominated for best actor in a leading role Oscar for the 1996 film “The People vs. Larry Flint.”
Born in Midland, Texas, Harrelson was raised in Lebanon, Ohio — his mom’s hometown.
He is up against some stiff competition in the in the Best Supporting Actor category: Willem Dafoe in “The Florida Project,” Richard Jenkins in “The Shape of Water,” Christopher Plummer in “All the Money in the World” and Sam Rockwell, his “Three Billboards” co-star.
Janney, a graduate of Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, worked with fellow Daytonians Martin Sheen and Rob Lowe on “The West Wing.” Janney played Dayton native C.J. Cregg.
Her long list of films includes roles in “The Help,” “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” “Hairspray,” “American Beauty,” “The Girl on the Train,” “The Hours,” “Finding Nemo,” “Big Night” and “Juno.”
DAVE CHAPPELLE TO PRESENT AT OSCARS
Another famous local celebrity has a tie to this year’s Oscars.
Producers have booked Dave Chappelle, who lives just outside Yellow Springs, as a presenter. Other presenters include: Emily Blunt, Sandra Bullock, Eugenio Derbez, Ansel Elgort, Jane Fonda, Jodie Foster, Eiza Gonzalez, Ashley Judd, Nicole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey, Helen Mirren, Rita Moreno, Lupita Nyong’o, Christopher Walken, Mahershala Ali, Chadwick Boseman, Viola Davis, Laura Dern, Gal Gadot, Jennifer Garner, Greta Gerwig, Tiffany Haddish, Armie Hammer, Mark Hamill, Tom Holland, Oscar Isaac, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kumail Nanjiani, Margot Robbie, Gina Rodriguez, Eva Marie Saint, Emma Stone, Wes Studi, Kelly Marie Tran, Daniela Vega and Zendaya.
Slated to perform this year’s Oscar-nominated songs are Mary J. Blige, Keala Settle, Sufjan Stevens, Common and Andra Day, and Natalia LaFourcade, Miguel and Gael Garcia Bernal.
The 90th Academy Awards will air live on ABC on Sunday at 8 p.m., and Jimmy Kimmel will host the telecast for the second year in a row.