Let's talk Oscar nominations.
We know, we know: the Academy Awards are about talent, not popularity. (Right?) No matter: today we go out on a limb and predict the winners of this year's Oscars based solely on their web popularity.
Below are the rankings of this year's nominees based on your search queries last week. The percentages show comparitive search "votes" -- each category adds up to 100%. Predicted winners are listed in bold.
Remember, you read it here first. The Oscars go to...
BEST ACTRESS
41% Hilary Swank
31% Julianne Moore
19% Annette Bening
7% Meryl Streep
2% Janet McTeer
BEST ACTOR
45% Kevin Spacey
34% Denzel Washington
17% Russell Crowe
3% Sean Penn
1% Richard Farnsworth
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
90% Angelina Jolie
6% Chloe Sevigny
2% Catherine Keener
1% Samantha Morton
1% Toni Collette
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
61% Tom Cruise
28% Jude Law
6% Michael Caine
3% Michael Clarke Duncan
2% Haley Joel Osment
BEST PICTURE
47% American Beauty
25% The Green Mile
14% The Sixth Sense
12% The Cider House Rules
2% The Insider
Angelina Jolie is the lead-pipe cinch -- she got 9 out of every 10 searches among supporting actress candidates. Best actress is the closest race, with Hilary "Karate Kid" Swank (41%) leading Julianne Moore (31%).
On the male side Denzel Washington and the heartthrobby Jude Law look like they have the best chance to sneak from second place into the winner's circle. Longest shots: Richard Farnsworth, Toni Collette and Samantha Morton, all at an Orrin Hatch-esque 1%.
And incidentally: the 'snubbed' Jim Carrey would have led the Best Actor race. He got 10% more queries last week than Kevin Spacey.
The awards ceremony (just a formality, now that we know the winners) takes place on March 26. Just for fun, we'll check in again a few weeks before the ceremony to see if your predictions have changed.
