Trying to follow in the footsteps of last year’s Best Original Screenplay winner Kenneth Branagh (“Belfast”), Focus Features is trying to position screenwriter, director and co-producer James Gray as one of the awards season’s nominees for “Armageddon Times”. The film is currently sitting with a respectable 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, and the awards team will be looking for opportunities beyond the writers branch.
After showing the film at the Cannes Film Festival, before making a stop at Telluride and later this week at the New York Film Festival, the distributor exclusively revealed to Variety its award submission categories for film actors.
Anne Hathaway, who plays devoted mother Esther, was one of the actors who seemed to straddle the line between lead and supporting, and she’ll be looking for the latter. Twice Oscar nominee for ‘Rachel Gets Married’ (2008) and ‘Les Miserables’ (2012), which she won for Best Supporting Actress, she did not return to the ceremony as a nominee over the past decade. With Michelle Williams’ move on “The Fabelmans” to lead actress, the studio apparently sees an opening for Hathaway in a very open category.
As brave grandmother Mickey Rabinowitz, four-time Tony nominee Tovah Feldshuh will also compete alongside Hathaway. While not getting much screen time compared to her co-stars, Feldshuh’s role is full of one-line zingers and steals the movie every moment she’s on screen.
“Time of Armageddon”
©Focus Features/courtesy Everett Collection
For supporting actor, Emmy winner Jeremy Strong as HBO’s (“Succession”) as stern father Irving, will try to break into a race that has several veterans, including his co-star Anthony Hopkins in as a wise and loving grandfather Aaron. Hopkins also has a wow turn of a scene in Florian Zeller’s “The Son” opposite Hugh Jackman that could also factor into the discussion.
In her feature debut, Jaylin Webb as Paul’s black friend Johnny Davis, who endures a myriad of hardships, will also be featured as a supporting cast. His co-star Banks Repeta, who plays young Paul, will be the only actor submitted for main consideration.
The coming-of-age story, which emphasizes the strength of family and the pursuit of the American Dream, also seeks recognition in Technical Races: Production Design (Happy Massee and Teri Bella) , cinematography (Darius Khondji, who also filmed “Bardo”), costume design (Madeline Weeks), film editing (Scott Morris) and original music (Christopher Spelman).
Also producing alongside Gray are Oscar-winning actor Anthony Katagas (“12 Years a Slave”), Marc Butan and Rodrigo Teixeira.
Gray will receive the Director’s Honor at Mill Valley and the Bill Wittliff Award for Screenwriting from the Austin Film Festival.
“Armageddon Time” will open in limited release on October 28 before expanding on November 4.