3) An Oscar Nom Would Be Recognition Of Ford Creating One Of Cinema’s Iconic Figures
To get yourself in the Oscar race, it’s generally assumed you have to cry and/or yell the way to a nomination, regardless of whether the character the actor is playing has any lasting appeal. Performances that are described as ‘powerhouse’ or ‘raw’ are the kind that tend to get actors on the ballot; these aren’t terms that apply to Harrison Ford as Han Solo. One word that does apply, however, is ‘iconic.’
The Best Supporting Actor category has over the last decade or so become a way not just to recognize the passionate and the overblown supporting roles, but the unique and unforgettable as well. Think Heath Ledger’s Joker, Javier Bardem’s Anton Chigurh, Christoph Waltz’s Hans Landa. These are iconic performances, the likes of which audiences had never seen before. So why not at long last acknowledge that Han Solo ranks alongside such characters? If we don’t reward actors for creating great, memorable characters, then what exactly is the Oscar for?