She will campaign alongside her Oscar-winning co-star and exec-producer, DiCaprio.
Based on David Grann’s 2017 non-fiction book “Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI,” the film tells the tragic true story of members of the Osage tribe who were murdered under suspicious circumstances during the 1920s.
“Killers” is a movie that focuses on the Indigenous experience, especially in the context of the events surrounding it. Scorsese’s intention and mission of the film is to highlight the voices of the Osage people who lived through these horrific events. Gladstone’s role could have gone either way on the awards circuit, but the campaign will represent a significant milestone with her role front and center.
The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where Scorsese, along with his actors including DiCaprio, Gladstone, Robert De Niro and Jesse Plemons, received enthusiastic standing ovation,
Gladstone’s work had become a frontrunner in the early awards season. Co-distributors Apple Original Films and Paramount hope the actress, who is 37, can make the lead category.
Only 3 Indigenous women nominated for best actress – Merle Oberon for “The Dark Angel” (1935), Keisha Castle-Hughes in “Whale Rider” (2003) and Yalitza Aparicio for “Roma” (2018). Those women are British, Kiwi, and Mexican, respectively.
An Indigenous actress from the U.S. has never won a SAG or Critics Choice prize, or even been nominated by those groups.
With Gladstone’s exit from the supporting actress category, that race has blown wide open with many potentials hoping to take her once-occupied frontrunner spot. With “Killers” predicted to be one of the top awards players, I also wouldn’t count out any of Gladstone’s Indigenous co-stars to make a play for acting love, notably Cara Jade Myers, who plays her sister Anna.
Produced by Scorsese, Dan Friedkin, Daniel Lupi and Bradley Thomas, Apple Original Films will release “Killers of the Flowers Moon” exclusively in theaters worldwide on October 20.
