

And the Runner-Up Is
Kevin Jacobsen
"And the Runner-Up Is" is the Oscar history podcast that highlights past races at the Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actress. Host Kevin Jacobsen and special guests break down why winners won, why losers lost, and which films and contenders were the likely runners-up, falling just short of taking home the gold.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 5, 2025 • 3h 40min
2020 Best Actress (feat. Ryan McQuade)
This week on the season premiere of And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back AwardsWatch executive editor Ryan McQuade to discuss the 2020 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Frances McDormand won for her performance in "Nomadland," beating Viola Davis in "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," Andra Day in "The United States vs. Billie Holiday," Vanessa Kirby in "Pieces of a Woman," and Carey Mulligan in "Promising Young Woman." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to McDormand. 0:00 - 18:16 - Introduction 18:17 - 41:42 - Viola Davis 41:43 - 1:11:28 - Andra Day 1:11:29 - 1:35:05 - Vanessa Kirby 1:35:06 - 2:02:24 - Carey Mulligan 2:02:25 - 2:26:37 - Frances McDormand 2:26:38 - 3:31:07 - Why Frances McDormand won / listener questions 3:31:07 - 3:39:45 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Jan 22, 2025 • 24min
A Woman Robbed: Sharon Stone and Pam Grier
Listen to this PREVIEW of the 19th episode of A Woman Robbed, a special bonus series you can hear on the And the Runner-Up Is Patreon exclusive feed! A Woman Robbed is a series in which Kevin is joined by a special guest in discussing women who had significant Oscar buzz heading into the nominations but were ultimately robbed/snubbed/omitted from the Best Actress lineup. In this episode, Kevin speaks with Josh Parham about two performances of the '90s that weren't nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars: Sharon Stone ("Basic Instinct") and Pam Grier ("Jackie Brown"). We discuss their performances, talk about why they came up short, and reveal whether we would have nominated them. You can listen to the full episode of A Woman Robbed by going to patreon.com/andtherunnerupis and contributing at the $3 per month tier. Clips included in this episode: "Basic Instinct" - TriStar Pictures

Jan 8, 2025 • 26min
A Woman Robbed: Faye Dunaway and Meg Ryan
Listen to this PREVIEW of the 18th episode of A Woman Robbed, a special bonus series you can hear on the And the Runner-Up Is Patreon exclusive feed! A Woman Robbed is a series in which Kevin is joined by a special guest in discussing women who had significant Oscar buzz heading into the nominations but were ultimately robbed/snubbed/omitted from the Best Actress lineup. In this episode, Kevin speaks with Cody Dericks about two performances of the '80s that weren't nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars: Faye Dunaway ("Mommie Dearest") and Meg Ryan ("When Harry Met Sally"). We discuss their performances, talk about why they came up short, and reveal whether we would have nominated them. You can listen to the full episode of A Woman Robbed by going to patreon.com/andtherunnerupis and contributing at the $3 per month tier. Clips included in this episode: "Mommie Dearest" - Paramount Pictures

Dec 24, 2024 • 2h 57min
2019 Best Actress (feat. Izzy from Be Kind Rewind)
This week on the season finale of And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back Izzy from Be Kind Rewind to discuss the 2019 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Renée Zellweger won for her performance in "Judy," beating Cynthia Erivo in "Harriet," Scarlett Johansson in "Marriage Story," Saoirse Ronan in "Little Women," and Charlize Theron in "Bombshell." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Zellweger. 0:00 - 10:58 - Introduction 10:59 - 30:58 - Cynthia Erivo 30:59 - 57:21 - Scarlett Johansson 57:22 - 1:18:35 - Saoirse Ronan 1:18:36 - 1:39:48 - Charlize Theron 1:39:49 - 1:59:56 - Renée Zellweger 1:59:57 - 2:52:11 - Why Renée Zellweger won / Twitter questions 2:52:12 - 2:57:18 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Dec 18, 2024 • 3h 35min
2018 Best Actress (feat. Fritz)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back Fritz of Fritz and the Oscars to discuss the 2018 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Olivia Colman won for her performance in "The Favourite," beating Yalitza Aparicio in "Roma," Glenn Close in "The Wife," Lady Gaga in "A Star Is Born," and Melissa McCarthy in "Can You Ever Forgive Me?". We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Colman. 0:00 - 12:56 - Introduction 12:57 - 35:49 - Yalitza Aparicio 35:50 - 1:07:03 - Glenn Close 1:07:04 - 1:39:51 - Lady Gaga 1:39:52 - 2:02:43 - Melissa McCarthy 2:02:44 - 2:28:13 - Olivia Colman 2:28:14 - 3:29:25 - Why Olivia Colman won / Twitter questions 3:29:26 - 3:34:59 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Dec 11, 2024 • 3h 15min
2017 Best Actress (feat. Karen Peterson)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back writer/podcaster Karen Peterson to discuss the 2017 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Frances McDormand won for her performance in "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," beating Sally Hawkins in "The Shape of Water," Margot Robbie in "I, Tonya," Saoirse Ronan in "Lady Bird," and Meryl Streep in "The Post." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to McDormand. 0:00 - 11:35 - Introduction 11:36 - 41:34 - Sally Hawkins 41:35 - 1:12:04 - Margot Robbie 1:12:05 - 1:35:47 - Saoirse Ronan 1:35:48 - 1:55:53 - Meryl Streep 1:55:54 - 2:21:01 - Frances McDormand 2:21:02 - 3:09:35 - Why Frances McDormand won / Twitter questions 3:09:36 - 3:15:07 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Dec 4, 2024 • 3h 17min
2016 Best Actress (feat. Eoin Daly)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back Eoin Daly to discuss the 2016 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Emma Stone won for her performance in "La La Land," beating Isabelle Huppert in "Elle," Ruth Negga in "Loving," Natalie Portman in "Jackie," and Meryl Streep in "Florence Foster Jenkins." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Stone. 0:00 - 13:30 - Introduction 13:31 - 44:19 - Isabelle Huppert 44:20 - 1:08:42 - Ruth Negga 1:08:43 - 1:31:17 - Natalie Portman 1:31:18 - 1:48:58 - Meryl Streep 1:48:59 - 2:14:58 - Emma Stone 2:14:59 - 3:11:57 - Why Emma Stone won / Twitter questions 3:11:58 - 3:16:54 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Nov 27, 2024 • 24min
A Woman Robbed: Ruth Gordon and Gena Rowlands
Listen to this PREVIEW of the 17th episode of A Woman Robbed, a special bonus series you can hear on the And the Runner-Up Is Patreon exclusive feed! A Woman Robbed is a series in which Kevin is joined by a special guest in discussing women who had significant Oscar buzz heading into the nominations but were ultimately robbed/snubbed/omitted from the Best Actress lineup. In this episode, Kevin speaks with Morgan Roberts about two performances of the '70s that weren't nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars: Ruth Gordon ("Harold and Maude") and Gena Rowlands ("Opening Night"). We discuss their performances, talk about why they came up short, and reveal whether we would have nominated them. You can listen to the full episode of A Woman Robbed by going to patreon.com/andtherunnerupis and contributing at the $3 per month tier. Clips included in this episode: "Harold and Maude" - Paramount Pictures

Nov 20, 2024 • 3h 16min
2015 Best Actress (feat. Chelsea Eichholz)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back podcaster Chelsea Eichholz to discuss the 2015 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Brie Larson won for her performance in "Room," beating Cate Blanchett in "Carol," Jennifer Lawrence in "Joy," Charlotte Rampling in "45 Years," and Saoirse Ronan in "Brooklyn." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Larson. 0:00 - 14:09 - Introduction 14:10 - 46:15 - Cate Blanchett 46:16 - 1:10:44 - Jennifer Lawrence 1:10:45 - 1:29:45 - Charlotte Rampling 1:29:46 - 1:49:29 - Saoirse Ronan 1:49:30 - 2:15:07 - Brie Larson 2:15:08 - 3:11:53 - Why Brie Larson won / Twitter questions 3:11:54 - 3:16:22 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Nov 13, 2024 • 3h 13min
2014 Best Actress (feat. Erik Anderson)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back AwardsWatch editor-in-chief Erik Anderson to discuss the 2014 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Julianne Moore won for her performance in "Still Alice," beating Marion Cotillard in "Two Days, One Night," Felicity Jones in "The Theory of Everything," Rosamund Pike in "Gone Girl," and Reese Witherspoon in "Wild." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Moore. 0:00 - 13:12 - Introduction 13:13 - 36:33 - Marion Cotillard 36:34 - 56:29 - Felicity Jones 56:30 - 1:28:59 - Rosamund Pike 1:29:00 - 1:51:02 - Reese Witherspoon 1:51:03 - 2:21:31 - Julianne Moore 2:21:32 - 3:07:18 - Why Julianne Moore won / Twitter questions 3:07:19 - 3:13:27 - Who was the runner-up? Buy And the Runner-Up Is merch at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/and-the-runner-up-is?ref_id=24261! Support And the Runner-Up Is on Patreon at patreon.com/andtherunnerupis! Follow Kevin Jacobsen on Twitter Follow Erik Anderson on Twitter Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter and Instagram Theme/End Music: "Diamonds" by Iouri Sazonov Additional Music: "Storming Cinema Ident" by Edward Blakeley Artwork: Brian O'Meara


