Oscar nominee Annette Bening thanks “outraged” fans for support

Annette Bening is in its moment. The renowned actress is in her fifth run for an Oscar statuette – this time for her intense and very physical performance in “Nyad”.

The film is based on the life of the legendary and determined swimmer Diana Nyad . At more than 60 years old, she swam from Cuba to Florida, more than 160km in the open sea. Bening competes in the Best Actress category for playing the swimmer on the big screen.

Bening, however, is not considered the favorite to win this year. When asked by CNN if she's mad as much as her fans, she laughed. “I appreciate their anger, I applaud their anger, I support their anger,” she said, laughing.

But she doesn't “live in anger” about the situation, she added.

Bening says that when it comes to the world of entertainment, “you have to have a sense of humor.” “One of the good things about the moment I'm in is that I can look back 34 years ago when I first went to the Oscars and what it was like, compare it to now, which gives me a perspective that allows me to just go with the flow. “, she said.

“I don’t really worry, I’m just grateful,” he said.

Bening's first time nominated in the Oscar category for Best Actress was for the film “The Immortals”, released in 1990. The crime film directed by Stephen Frears in which she starred alongside John Cusack and Anjelica Huston was one of her first roles that she had in a feature film, she stole the spotlight and her career took off. Other examples are “Bugsy” and “My Dear President”.

The role that made Bening best known took place in 1999 and earned another Oscar nomination for Best Actress was that of Carolyn Burnham in “American Beauty”. Looking back – when she acted alongside Kevin Spacey, who received his second Oscar for the performance – Bening mentioned the “duality” in Carolyn that made her stand out in the character.

“She loved him so much and wanted to connect with him so much. That’s the point,” she said.

At the Oscars in 2000, Bening lost to Hilary Swank, who won for “Boys Don't Cry.” The same happened five years later, when Bening was again nominated for Best Actress for “Little Julia”, and Swank took the statuette for “Golden Girl”.

But Bening has only fond memories of making the oft-forgotten “Little Julia,” in which she got to play a vengeful, calculating stage actress in 1930s London who somehow remains completely charming.

“I got the script for 'Little Julia' and read it and thought, 'Are you kidding? Are you really asking me to do this? This is so cool! This is so rich. It's so complex!” she recalled.

The film, directed by Istávan Szabó – whom Bening called “the king of Hungarian cinema” – was filmed in Budapest in the summer of 2003. Bening's children were young at the time and stayed with her during production, which she called “a great experience”.

“We still have a lot of funny memories about the time we were in Budapest,” she said. “It was a dream, really a dream.”

Bening's career has flourished since then. She received another Oscar nomination in 2011 for “My Mother and My Father” and had a series of roles that were met with acclaim but were snubbed by the Film Academy. Examples of this are “Women of the 20th Century”, from 2016, and “Film Stars Never Die”, in 2017.

Bening is far from considering his work finished. Fresh off her acclaimed and much-hyped performance in “Nyad,” alongside fellow nominee Jodie Foster, she is about to hit the small screen in her first television role, alongside Sam Neill in the Peacock series “Apples Never Fall.” ”. The series is based on the book by Liane Moriarty, known as “Big Little Lies”.

In “Apples Never Fall,” Bening plays a tennis coach and mother who mysteriously disappears. It's the first time Bening has had the chance to explore a character for more than seven episodes. “From an acting standpoint, I was blown away,” she said.

As for the Oscars next Sunday, Bening said she is excited to be “a fan.” “I loved the films this year, there were really good films,” she said, specifically mentioning the Japanese film in the Best International Film category: “Perfect Days”. She also cited several short films as her favorites.

“What I can do is be a fan and go up to people and say, 'Wow, you did great!'”, she said. Here comes the best part, according to her. “I come home, spend time with my dog ​​and my husband, and get away from it all.”

That is – until her next acclaimed role throws her back into it.