‘King Richard’ Role Generates Oscar Buzz for Will Smith

 

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Will the third time be the charm? That's what Will Smith fans are anxious to find out after rave reviews from the Telluride Film Festival following the debut of his latest effort their Thursday generated early Oscar buzz for the iconic musician turned actor.

Just got out of King Richard which is fantastic. Will Smith is wonderful and coming for that Oscar. The whole cast is great. A really enjoyable watch. #Telluride

— Rebecca Ford (@Beccamford) September 6, 2021

KING RICHARD: Excellent film! A rousing, feel-good crowd-pleaser about the rise of tennis superstars Venus & Serena Williams! Oscar noms for #WillSmith (Lead Actor) & #AunjanueEllis (Supp Actress), maybe Best Pic! Loved from start to finish! @KingRichardFilm #Telluride pic.twitter.com/nvXbtDSA8h

— Scott Mantz (@MovieMantz) September 3, 2021

Don’t remember ever choking up during a movie as much as I did during KING RICHARD. It’s the most amazing story, told so well. I ballboyed for Venus, got to know Mr. Williams, practiced at Macci’s academy—they nailed it all. Will Smith is gonna be hard to beat. The film too. Man! pic.twitter.com/49bUMVT4kh

— Scott Feinberg (@ScottFeinberg) September 3, 2021

In the movie, "King Richard," the two-time nominee portrays Richard Williams, the father and first coach of tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams. A press release from Warner Brothers describes the flick as chronicling "the journey of Richard Williams, an undeterred father instrumental in raising two of the most extraordinarily gifted athletes of all time, who will end up changing the sport of tennis forever."

Smith received Academy Awards nominations for his starring roles in two previous biopics, losing to  Denzel Washington ("Training Day")  in 2002 after being nominated for "Ali" and to Forrest Whitaker ("The Last King of Scotland") in 2007 when he got the nod for his work in "The Pursuit of Happyness."

The thespian, who has racked up five Grammys as a musician, may not be a lock to finally hear his name called on acting's biggest stage, but critics have already started pushing him as a frontrunner for best actor— including industry-standard Variety which said of the race for 2022's top award and Smith who it ranked as its No. 1 contender:

Twenty years after Will Smith lost his first Oscar nomination for “Ali” to Denzel Washington for “Training Day,” the two biggest celebrities could battle it out once again, at least based on the early word for “King Richard” and “The Tragedy of Macbeth.”

The movie premieres In Theaters and HBO Max on November 19, but for those seeking an early glimpse of what the buzz is all about watch the trailer below: