

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

Nov 6, 2024 • 3h 15min
2013 Best Actress (feat. Sophia Ciminello)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back writer, editor, and podcaster Sophia Ciminello to discuss the 2013 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Cate Blanchett won for her performance in "Blue Jasmine," beating Amy Adams in "American Hustle," Sandra Bullock in "Gravity," Judi Dench in "Philomena," and Meryl Streep in "August: Osage County." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Blanchett. 0:00 - 14:16 - Introduction 14:16 - 43:32 - Amy Adams 43:33 - 1:04:14 - Sandra Bullock 1:04:15 - 1:23:57 - Judi Dench 1:23:58 - 1:43:36 - Meryl Streep 1:43:37 - 2:08:38 - Cate Blanchett 2:08:39 - 3:05:50 - Why Cate Blanchett won / Twitter questions 3:05:51 - 3:14:49 - 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 Sophia Ciminello 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

Oct 30, 2024 • 24min
A Woman Robbed: Deborah Kerr and Joan Crawford
Listen to this PREVIEW of the 16th 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 Matt Duffy about two performances of the '60s that weren't nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars: Deborah Kerr ("The Innocents") and Joan Crawford ("What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?"). 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. Follow Kevin Jacobsen on Twitter: @Kevin_Jacobsen Follow Matt Duffy on Twitter: @Mattduffy33 Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter: @OscarRunnerUp Clips included in this episode: "The Innocents" - 20th Century Fox

Oct 23, 2024 • 2h 58min
2012 Best Actress (feat. Joey Gentile)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back writer-producer Joey Gentile to discuss the 2012 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Jennifer Lawrence won for her performance in "Silver Linings Playbook," beating Jessica Chastain in "Zero Dark Thirty," Emmanuelle Riva in "Amour," Quvenzhané Wallis in "Beasts of the Southern Wild," and Naomi Watts in "The Impossible." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Lawrence. 0:00 - 14:24 - Introduction 14:25 - 41:49 - Jessica Chastain 41:50 - 1:03:14 - Emmanuelle Riva 1:03:15 - 1:26:18 - Quvenzhané Wallis 1:26:19 - 1:39:35 - Naomi Watts 1:39:36 - 2:02:24 - Jennifer Lawrence 2:02:25 - 2:50:45 - Why Jennifer Lawrence won / Twitter questions 2:50:46 - 2:58:02 - 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 Joey Gentile 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

Oct 16, 2024 • 3h 14min
2011 Best Actress (feat. Baby Clyde)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back Oscars obsessive Baby Clyde to discuss the 2011 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Meryl Streep won for her performance in "The Iron Lady," beating Glenn Close in "Albert Nobbs," Viola Davis in "The Help," Rooney Mara in "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," and Michelle Williams in "My Week with Marilyn." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Streep. 0:00 - 10:28 - Introduction 10:29 - 33:22 - Glenn Close 33:23 - 56:00 - Viola Davis 56:01 - 1:19:24 - Rooney Mara 1:19:25 - 1:39:25 - Michelle Williams 1:39:26 - 2:02:24 - Meryl Streep 2:02:25 - 3:09:04 - Why Meryl Streep won / Twitter questions 3:09:05 - 3:14:16 - 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 Baby Clyde 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

Oct 9, 2024 • 3h 10min
2010 Best Actress (feat. Steven Canals)
This week on the season premiere of And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back writer-director Steven Canals to discuss the 2010 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Natalie Portman won for her performance in "Black Swan," beating Annette Bening in "The Kids Are All Right," Nicole Kidman in "Rabbit Hole," Jennifer Lawrence in "Winter's Bone," and Michelle Williams in "Blue Valentine." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Portman. 0:00 - 14:11 - Introduction 14:12 - 36:38 - Annette Bening 36:39 - 1:06:09 - Nicole Kidman 1:06:10 - 1:26:59 - Jennifer Lawrence 1:27:00 - 1:51:59 - Michelle Williams 1:52:00 - 2:23:25 - Natalie Portman 2:23:26 - 3:03:57 - Why Natalie Portman won / Twitter questions 3:03:58 - 3:10:02 - 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 Steven Canals 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

Sep 25, 2024 • 23min
How Did They Win: Adrien Brody ('The Pianist')
Listen to a PREVIEW of the 16th episode of How Did They Win, a special bonus series you can hear on the And the Runner-Up Is Patreon exclusive feed! How Did They Win is a series in which Kevin is joined by special guests in breaking down a notable Oscar category outside of Best Picture. In this episode, Kevin speaks with Tom O'Brien and Amy Thomasson about Adrien Brody winning Best Actor at the 2002 Oscars. This episode includes a breakdown of each nominee, a discussion of why they were nominated, why four of them lost, why Adrien Brody won, and all the notable snubs. You can listen to the full episode of How Did They Win by going to patreon.com/andtherunnerupis and contributing at the $3 per month tier. Follow Kevin Jacobsen on Twitter: @Kevin_Jacobsen Follow Tom O'Brien on Twitter: @thomaseobrien Follow Amy Thomasson on Twitter: @athomasson11 Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter: @OscarRunnerUp Clip included in this episode: "The Quiet American" - Miramax

Sep 11, 2024 • 3h 12min
Poor Things (feat. Cody Dericks)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes back Next Best Picture/AwardWatch writer/podcaster Cody Dericks to talk about Yorgos Lanthimos' "Poor Things," the presumed runner-up in the 2023 Best Picture race that lost to "Oppenheimer." We also discuss all other Best Picture nominees and which film we think deserved to win the Oscar. 0:00 - 5:24 - Introduction 5:24 - 46:58 - "Poor Things" review 46:59 - 1:14:39 - Why "Poor Things" lost Best Picture / Why "Oppenheimer" won 1:14:39 - 2:55:32 - Assessing the other eight Best Picture nominees 2:55:33 - 3:02:43 - Shoulda been a contender 3:02:44 - 3:11:43 - Did "Poor Things" deserve to win? 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 Cody Dericks on Twitter Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter and Instagram Theme/End Music is "The Virtue" by Jonathan Adamich Artwork: Brian O'Meara

Aug 28, 2024 • 23min
A Woman Robbed: Marilyn Monroe and Jane Wyman
Listen to this PREVIEW of the 15th 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 Casey Lee Clark about two performances of the '50s that weren't nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars: Marilyn Monroe ("Gentlemen Prefer Blondes") and Jane Wyman ("All That Heaven Allows"). 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. Follow Kevin Jacobsen on Twitter: @Kevin_Jacobsen Follow Casey Lee Clark on Twitter: @CaseyLeeClark Follow And the Runner-Up Is on Twitter: @OscarRunnerUp Clips included in this episode: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" - 20th Century Fox

Aug 21, 2024 • 3h 13min
2009 Best Actress (feat. Nick Ruhrkraut)
This week on the season finale of And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes Oscar Wild cohost Nick Ruhrkraut to discuss the 2009 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Sandra Bullock won for her performance in "The Blind Side," beating Helen Mirren in "The Last Station," Carey Mulligan in "An Education," Gabourey Sidibe in "Precious," and Meryl Streep in "Julie & Julia." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Bullock. 0:00 - 9:53 - Introduction 9:54 - 28:25 - Helen Mirren 28:26 - 55:48 - Carey Mulligan 55:49 - 1:17:33 - Gabourey Sidibe 1:17:34 - 1:35:34 - Meryl Streep 1:35:35 - 1:58:31 - Sandra Bullock 1:58:32 - 3:08:48 - Why Sandra Bullock won / Twitter questions 3:08:39 - 3:13:10 - 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 Nick Ruhrkraut 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

Aug 14, 2024 • 3h 15min
2008 Best Actress (feat. Kenzie Vanunu)
This week on And the Runner-Up Is, Kevin welcomes Offscreen Central editor-in-chief Kenzie Vanunu to discuss the 2008 Oscar race for Best Actress, where Kate Winslet won for her performance in "The Reader," beating Anne Hathaway in "Rachel Getting Married," Angelina Jolie in "Changeling," Melissa Leo in "Frozen River," and Meryl Streep in "Doubt." We discuss all of these nominated performances and determine who we think was the runner-up to Winslet. 0:00 - 10:38 - Introduction 10:39 - 35:36 - Anne Hathaway 35:37 - 1:08:15 - Angelina Jolie 1:08:16 - 1:30:41 - Melissa Leo 1:30:42 - 1:58:06 - Meryl Streep 1:58:07 - 2:20:22 - Kate Winslet 2:20:23 - 3:09:33 - Why Kate Winslet won / Twitter questions 3:09:34 - 3:15:01 - 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 Kenzie Vanunu 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


