Michael B. Jordan beat Timothée Chalamet to this year's best actor Oscar in Los Angeles on Sunday night after a months-long awards race that had pitted Jordan's turn in Sinners against Chalamet's lead role in Marty Supreme, and the outcome had far more to do with performances and precursor prizes than a late-breaking row over ballet and opera.
Chalamet spent the winter fronting a full-tilt campaign for Marty Supreme, which opened in December and quickly became one of the most talked-about films of the season. He embraced the role of tireless promoter, from collaborations with underground artist EsDeeKid to wearing his Marty Supreme jacket like a uniform and appearing at branded events around the world. To many observers, he resembled a classic front-runner: young but seasoned, overdue in the eyes of fans, with a studio clearly prepared to invest.
