Renée Zellweger welcomed back with best actress Oscar
Renée Zellweger poses with her trophy at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood in California on Sunday. AFP
Hollywood’s dearest Bridget Jones, Renée Zellweger, takes home her career’s second Oscar for limning Judy Garland in the biopic “Judy” on Sunday.
Zellweger’s recent win for Best Actress adds to the mounting pile of prizes as the actress sweeps the awards season with her piercing portrayal of America’s beloved.
The successive winning-streak that began in 2019 continues to bulldoze through the year headlining with a BAFTA, a Screen Actors Guild, a Golden Globe and Saturday’s Spirit award, all testaments to Zellweger’s arresting performance in the movie.
“Judy” sees actress-singer Garland through the last moments of her life: desolate, struggling to make ends meet and pinioned by the blue devils all the while seeking reprieve in substance abuse.
The movie closely follows a series of five-week long shows held by Garland at the Talk of the Town nightclub in 1968. Her passing in 1969 closed the final chapter of her 45-year long showbiz career.
While Zellweger’s long-awaited comeback after six-year hiatus was showered with accolades, Judy Garland lost her best actress Academy in 1955.
The 50-year-old actress commemorated the late icon with her win on Sunday: “Judy Garland did not receive this honour in her time. I am certain that this moment is an extension of the celebration of her legacy that began on our film set.”
The evening’s win in part owes to Zellweger’s retreat from her acting stint in 2010 that had triggered some soul-searching.
“I got sick of the sound of my own voice: it was time to go away and grow up a bit. You cannot be a good storyteller if you don't have life experiences, and you can't relate to people.”
Recharged and renewed, the “Judy” actress now stands at two nominations and two wins from the Academy.
