‘The Talent' author on the topsy-turvy Oscar season and (mostly) good vibes throughout

Los Angeles Times

25-02-2025

The ingénue. The trainwreck. The British stage actor. The matriarch. The underdog. These are the archetypes at the heart of Variety correspondent Daniel D'Addario's debut novel, 'The Talent,' centering on five female actors vying for an Academy Award.
But the same descriptors could apply to this year's nominees — a group that includes former Brat Packer Demi Moore, 'Anora' newcomer Mikey Madison and 'Wicked' star Cynthia Erivo as well as Fernanda Torres, matriarch of 'I'm Still Here,' and controversial 'Emilia Pérez' lead Karla Sofía Gascón.
'I've been saying to folks that if I'd written a novel about this year's best actress Oscars race it would have been rejected as not credible and beyond belief,' chuckles D'Addario from his home in Brooklyn.
D'Addario was inspired to write 'The Talent,' arriving in bookstores a week before the ceremony, by imagining the areas of performers' lives that are inaccessible to him as a celebrity profile writer and moderator on Variety's 'Actors on Actors' series.
'It was very fun mapping that out and imagining the closed-door conversations that I'm not privy to,' he says.
Just as fun: discussing who we want to win, who we think will win (we're both pulling for 'Anora' and Moore) and — the unearthing of past racist tweets from Gascón aside — relishing a 'positive, upbeat and fun Oscars season' that is also the most chaotic one in recent memory.
The following interview has been lightly edited and condensed for length and clarity.
A novel about the drama and scandal of the best actress Oscar nominees couldn't have come at a more opportune time.
I'm a bit shocked. I've been saying to folks that if I'd written a novel about this year's best actress Oscars race it would have been rejected as not credible and beyond belief.
What inspired you to write 'The Talent'?
Anyone who pays attention to the Oscars or awards in general knows that there are people who, over time, have reputations as perennial losers. There are multiple people for whom this is true. I got to thinking about what it takes, if you've lost the prize [multiple] times, to keep going back knowing that the likelihood is, because you're one of five, you're going to lose again. What inner strength does that take on one hand, and what desire does it take on the other hand? I thought that would be an interesting conflict that could fuel interesting characters.
What was it like writing fiction, coming from a journalistic background?
As a reporter, I'm presented with a set of facts. I can't change them, but with my writing skills I can make them as interesting as possible. Using the tools of fiction, I could use the scenarios I was making up and have them touch more explicitly on themes I was interested in, such as parents and children, class differences and the other things that are at play in the book. I felt very liberated in a way that I don't as a reporter, even though I love reporting.
Here are five personalities that were recognizable as types of actresses who would create friction between them. It was very fun mapping that out and imagining the closed-door conversations that I'm not privy to. When I'm writing a profile, I'm lucky to spend two hours with someone, but it's within a very mediated context.
Were there any real-life stories that inspired some of the storylines?
I saw a documentary about eight years ago at the New York Film Festival about the life of Maria Callas, and I just filed it away to someday do something with. So when I was thinking about what movies I could put [my characters] in, I was like, a Maria Callas biopic would be a really good movie! Obviously Pablo Larraín had the same idea. I considered changing it to something else because I didn't want to look like I was copying him, but I had almost finished it when Angelina Jolie was cast.
I don't want to say too much, as I want readers to find their own connections between the characters and who would be their real-world counterparts. Throughout the book, there are these moments when we step outside the narrative and we see how the world is perceiving these women, and my intention was to be funny and satirical but to also offer a glimpse into the notion that, ultimately, this race is completely beyond their control no matter how hard they try because it will always be seen through other eyes. Before it reaches the voters and the viewers at home, it has to be interpreted through the media, which will inherently always have its own agendas and biases.
What do you think about the actual slate of best actress nominees, which feels like a really exciting crop and it's anyone's game, not just in this category but across the board. Do you agree?
I think the Oscars this year have been tremendously exciting. Best picture feels so unsettled and like so many different films could win. That's what you want. You want to feel as though it's a healthy competition and everything gets its moment. When it's just a coronation, that's just boring.
As for best actress, and really all of the acting categories, between true newcomers and first-time nominees with a great story, it sounds trite but it's honestly heartwarming. Apart from the elephant in the room, it feels like a really positive, upbeat and fun Oscars season, which serves as an answer to the question of why we're doing this at all in a moment when so many people are suffering in Los Angeles. But in a world where the show needs to go on in order to aid the economy of Los Angeles and provide work to all the people it provides work to, there's so many great stories that have come out of it.
Let's get to the elephant in the room then — you said earlier that if you included storylines like what has transpired in the real-life best actress race in 'The Talent,' you'd be accused of being unrealistic, but really, the Karla Sofía Gascón of it all writes itself.
Where to begin? By all indications, Karla Sofía Gascón seems to really regret that this happened. I don't want to pillory her more. It's been a double education for her in a way. She had a very rapid rise, and a very rapid fall. Both of those things are challenging in different ways. I feel for everyone, because it can't be easy to be one of her co-stars and be constantly asked about tweets you didn't write and didn't know about. Gascón took a provocative attitude on social media that didn't serve her well. Someone should have stepped in and cleaned it up for her. It really roiled everything and [the Academy Awards campaign for 'Emila Pérez'] seems to be moving on without her. I thought we'd still be thinking about it up until the night of the Oscars, but in retrospect it's just another data point in the most chaotic Oscars season I can remember.
On a more positive note, one of your characters says that the way the campaign circuit is set up is to deliberately isolate the nominees from one another and encourage them to compete. One thing I've found really refreshing is the seeming camaraderie among the nominees.
Beyond all the drama, it's definitely noticeable that this year the vibes have been really good. It does feel that there's a level of respect among the nominees that is really gratifying to see. I'm lucky enough to be a part of 'Variety's Actors on Actors' — I'm there when we film them — and it was especially lovely this year. There was a ton of camaraderie. Maybe it's that there is no fore-ordained frontrunner. If there was one movie that was winning everything, it would feel more punishing to those who were in it to go and lose every time.
Who do you want to win lead actress?
This is tough. On the merits, 'Anora' is my favorite movie of the year and 'Anora' is not 'Anora' without Mikey Madison. She is remarkable. Part of me wants her to win, and the part of me that wrote this book who is wrapped up in career-long narratives and being passed over feels for Demi. If either of them win, I'll be very happy.
And who do you think will win?
Demi Moore.