SHOWBIZ
Brit Bookies Back Coens For Oscars
2008-02-18 11:56am
British bookies are picking fraternal directing duo Joel and Ethan Coen to walk away with two of the biggest awards at the Oscars later this month for their violent crime drama No Country For Old Men.
The movie, which stars Javier Bardem as a hitman pursuing Josh Brolin in a brutal tale of drug deal that goes wrong on the US-Mexico border, has been nominated for eight Academy Awards.
Bookmaker Ladbrokes makes it 1/3 to win Best Picture, while the Coen brothers are even shorter odds at 1/4 to win Best Director.
No Country For Old Men has already won the Producers Guild of America Award, the Screen Actors' Guild Award and the Directors Guild of America Award for best film of the year.
Ladbroke's full odds for the Best Picture Academy Award are: No Country For Old Men 1/3, There Will Be Blood 4/1, Atonement 6/1, Juno 14/1, Michael Clayton 33/1.
In the best picture stakes, Ladbrokes has Ethan and Joel Cohen well in front at odds of 1/4, ahead of Paul Thomas Anderson for There Will Be Blood at 5/1, Julian Schnabel for The Diving Bell & the Butterfly at 6/1, Jason Reitman for Juno at 25/1 and Tony Gilroy for Michael Clayton at 25/1.
Daniel Day-Lewis is the hot 1/12 favourite to be crowned Best Actor for his part in There Will Be Blood, ahead of Johnny Depp at 9/1, George Clooney at 10/1, Viggo Mortensen at 20/1 and Tommy Lee Jones at 33/1.
Julie Christie leads the Best Actress odds at 4/9, ahead of Marion Cottilard 2/1, Ellen Page 9/1, Cate Blanchett 33/1 and Laura Linney 33/1.
No Country For Old Men's Spanish actor Javier Bardem is the hot favourite with Ladbrokes to win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar at 1/12, ahead of Casey Aflleck 10/1, Tom Wilkinson 16/1, Hal Holbrook 14/1 and Phillip Seymour Hoffman 25/1.
In the Best Supporting Actress category, Ladbrooke's odds are Cate Blanchett 11/10, Amy Ryan 2/1, Ruby Dee 10/3, Tilda Swinton 10/1, Saoirsee Ronan 16/1.
Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks and Nicole Kidman have been confirmed as stars who will be handing out Oscars in Los Angeles on February 24, as well as last year's best actor and actress winners, Forest Whitaker and Dame Helen Mirren.
(c) NewsRoom 2008