Eon, Sony to press for Skyfall Oscar nomination, LAT says

UPDATE (Nov. 12) — The DEADLINE entertainment news Web site has published a story discussing Skyfall’s Oscar prospects and how the studios may launch an Oscar campaign.

ORIGINAL POST: Eon Productions and Sony Pictures plan to press for a Best Picture Oscar nomination for Skyfall, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Some key details in an excerpt:

“Skyfall” director Sam Mendes will be making the rounds in Los Angeles this weekend, participating in a Q&A at an all-guild screening at the Directors Guild on Saturday afternoon, a Q&A for the Producers Guild on Saturday night and then answering questions at a Screen Actors Guild nominating committee event at the Pacific Design Center on Sunday afternoon. Mendes’ weekend will culminate with an academy screening Sunday night, where he’ll be joined by actresses Naomie Harris and Bérénice Marlohe and and the franchise’s owners, producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.

(snip)

The question now: Do the film’s owners — MGM and the Broccoli estate — along with Sony Pictures, the movie’s distributor, posess the awards-season know-how to turn all this good will into a campaign that connects with academy members? Until very recently, the backers had taken a wait-and-see attitude, a source at the studio not authorized to speak publicly tells us. But now that the strong reviews are pouring in and the money is piling up, they’re ready to go full bore.

The story also quotes two Academy members, not identified by the Times, about Skyfall’s chances.

“Casino Royale” won the franchise a lot of good will,” one Oscar voter says. “If ‘Skyfall’ is better than that, then I see absolutely no reason why it couldn’t be in the conversation for best picture.”

The 007 film series has won only two Oscars: Norman Wanstall for sound for 1964’s Goldfinger and John Stears for special effects in 1965’s Thunderball. For the latter, only two movies were even nominated (The Greatest Story Ever Told being the other). The Spy Who Loved Me was the most-nominated 007 film with three (song, score and production design) but won zero.

A Bond movie hasn’t even been nominated since 1981’s For Your Eyes Only got a nomination for Best Song. In 1982, Eon co-founder Albert R. Broccoli was given the Irving Thalberg Award. The award is for career achievement by a producer.

To read the entire Los Angeles Times story, just CLICK HERE.

U.S. Skyfall showings underway

Bond contemplated whether to see Skyfall in Imax or at a regular theater.

Skyfall, the 23rd James Bond movie, doesn’t officially open until Nov. 9. But there are at least some preview showings available to audiences tonight (Nov. 7). We know of at least two operatives (aka U.S. Bond fans) seeing it tonight at any rate.

Some showings may have occurred as early as 12:07 a.m. today (0:07 military time, 11-7, get it?).

Thursday, Nov. 8, will see the movie have regular showings at Imax theaters (and possibly some non-Imax theaters based on some snooping we’ve done). On Friday, the movie will officially open in the U.S.

The movie is projected to be the top-grossing movie in the U.S. this weekend. It doesn’t have a lot of competition (Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln movie will have limited showings but doesn’t have it general release until Nov. 16). The movie is being released by the Sony Pictures unit of Sony Corp., which co-financed the movie with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.