The Oscars acting categories always prove a contentious struggle between recognizing an individual performance and an individual’s entire career. Will Smith‘s lead performance in King Richard puts the actor in the same situation, where fans of the Academy Awards are left guessing how much of his contention for the golden statuette will be due to his role in the film or his career overall.
This is not the first time the Oscars saw Smith’s nomination in the category, but it may be his best shot at a victory. The problem is that he deserved it more for past roles, and his competition this year deserves it more than he does.
Will Smith has been a popular entertainer for years, expanding his repertoire as a musician to the popular TV series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air throughout the 1990s before transitioning to a booming film career that saw him become a dominating force at the box office. As Smith’s film career continued he proved his talents for commercial success did not need to be mutually exclusive to critical acclaim. His Oscar nominations for Best Actor in 2002’s Ali and 2007’s Pursuit of Happyness proved to be Smith’s nearest successes in finally winning the Academy Award, and stand out as precedent that makes him all the likelier for his latest nomination for King Richard.
It is not unprecedented for the Academy to recognize actors with sterling careers more on the basis of their past performances than the one they contend for at the time. Perhaps the most famous example is Leondardo DiCaprio’s win for The Revenant after three previous nominations failed to take the actor all the way, despite his turn in The Revenant proving lackluster in comparison to his nominated roles in The Aviator, Blood Diamond, and The Wolf of Wall Street. It’s possible that Smith occupies the same position, but the comparison may depend on just how strong an individual feels about Smith’s role as Richard Williams.
King Richard sees Smith’s portrayal as the real-life figure Richard Williams endeavoring to craft his daughters, Venus and Serena, into world-class tennis champions. Lack of funding and precedent for Black athletes in the sport challenge Williams on his quest, but his hardheaded determination and singularity of vision fuel the sports biopic in its tale that ultimately vindicates Richard’s efforts. It certainly proves to be a meaty role and one with plenty of emotional range for Smith to prove his talents. But compared to the raw emotionality and vulnerability he displayed in Pursuit of Happyness or the strikingly familiar portrayal of the famous boxer in Ali, Richard Williams just feels lackluster.
The role proves lackluster not only against Smith’s past performances, but also against his competition in the category. Denzel Washington’s Macbeth brings the veteran actor’s full range of talents to bear in a nuanced performance of a classic character. Benedict Cumberbatch offers the same nuance to the chief figure of The Power of the Dog, armoring himself in toxic masculinity with the raw nerve of his vulnerability always peeking through the chinks. Andrew Garfield’s lead role in tick, tick…BOOM! had a similar tale in King Richard inasmuch as it focused on a real-life figure’s determined commitment to their vision, but with the added edge that Garfield’s film sees his character grow, learn, and change meaningfully rather than ending his story in vindication.
All three feel more deserving of the Best Actor award than Smith’s turn in King Richard, yet it still seems that past nominations put Smith in the lead contention for the role. While Washington won the award previously for Training Day, and Garfield and Cumberbatch have both been nominated for Best Actor only once before, it’s Smith who enjoys the unique status of repeated nominations without any past victories.
Yet it’s hard to escape the feeling that such assessments should not be what the awards are all about. Best Actor is a tough category this year, and it seems a shame to fans who value the spirit of the Oscars that the competition could be decided by factors so far outside the relevance of an individual performance. Smith may win the award for King Richard, but he may not deserve the crown.
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