The new movie starringJeremy Allen Whitecould break an Academy Awards streak that has lasted for more than half a decade. White had his breakout role when he was cast as Phillip “Lip” Gallagher in Showtime’sShameless, which ran for 11 seasons between 2011 and 2021. He then rose to even greater fame by playing chef Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto in the FX on Hulu dramedyThe Bear, a role for which he has won two Primetime Emmy Awards and three Golden Globes. This success has allowed him to expand his career into a number of notable movies as well.
The 34-year-old actor’s latest big-screen venture is theupcomingSpringsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, in which he will portray iconic New Jersey rock star Bruce Springsteen. The movie, which is based on a 2023 biography by Warren Zanes, was directed byCrazy Heart’s Scott Cooper and co-stars Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter Hauser, Odessa Young, Gaby Hoffmann, Stephen Graham, David Krumholtz, and Marc Maron. It is a dramatization of the development of Springsteen’s sixth album, 1982’sNebraska. The movie, which features the star singing iconic tracks like “Born to Run,” isalready garnering a certain amount of Oscar buzz for White.
Music Biopics Have Struggled At The Oscars In Recent Years
Even Frontrunners Have Struggled To Gain Traction
One potential hurdle to Jeremy Allen White earning his Oscar forSpringsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhereis the fact thatmusic biopicshave not been performing well in acting categories in recent years. For instance, although the Bob Dylan biopicA Complete Unknownand the Elvis Presley biopicElviswere both nominated for eight Academy Awards apiece, neither of them won any, even though stars Timothée Chalamet and Austin Butler were considered frontrunners in their seasons. Below, see a breakdown ofevery actor nominated for an Oscar for playing a real-life musician in a biographical or semi-biographical drama since 2021:
Leslie Odom Jr. (One Night in Miami…)
Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah)
In addition to this string of Oscar losses,a number of music biopic stars have been snubbed by the Oscars altogether since 2021, including Angelina Jolie (who played Maria Callas inMaria), Kingsley Ben-Adir (who starred inBob Marley: One Love), Marisa Abela (who played Amy Winehouse inBack to Black), Naomi Ackie (who starred inWhitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody), Robbie Williams (who portrayed himself as a CGI chimp inBetter Man), and Jennifer Hudson (who played Aretha Franklin inRespect).
The most recent acting win for a music biopic is Renée Zellweger, who won Best Actress in 2020 for her performance as Judy Garland inJudy.The most recent Best Actor win for a music biopic was even longer ago, when Rami Malek won in 2019 for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury inBohemian Rhapsody.
Why Jeremy Allen White Could Win An Oscar In 2026
There Are Many Factors Working In His Favor
In spite of the hurdles facing music biopics, the newJeremy Allen White movieis still a strong contender for earning his first Oscar nomination. There are multiple reasons for this being the case, not the least of which being the fact thathe has won two SAG awards forThe Bear. Because members of the Screen Actors Guild make up the biggest branch of the voting body of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), this already gives the performer a solid standing with the group that could be responsible for a nomination and an eventual win.
There are quite a few other factors working in the favor ofDeliver Me from Nowhere, including the widespread popularity of Bruce Springsteen and the fact thatits October 24 release date places it on the schedule at a peak time for awards seasonattention(this year’s Best Picture winner,Anora, debuted on Jun 03, 2025). Additionally, the star has undergone a physical and vocal transformation for the role, an approach which frequently garners the admiration of the Academy.
Some of the most notable Oscar wins involving physical transformations, either naturally or via prosthetics, are Charlize Theron forMonster, Nicole Kidman forThe Hours, and Christian Bale forThe Fighter.
There is also precedent for an Oscar win, asScott Cooper’sCrazy Heartearned Jeff Bridges a Best Actor win in 2010for portraying a troubled country singer, though his character in the movie was fictional.
He And His Co-Stars Were Snubbed In 2024
Another reason that Jeremy Allen White is in a prime position to earn an Oscar nomination forSpringsteen: Delvier Me from Nowhereis the fact thathe has already starred in a biographical drama that was snubbed by the Academy. In2023’sThe Iron Claw, he played real-life figure Kerry Von Erich, who was part of a wrestling dynasty that included his father Fritz Von Erich (Holt McCallany) and his brothers Kevin Von Erich (Zac Efron) and David Von Erich (Harris Dickinson). Although it initially had strong awards buzz, it was snubbed by both the Oscars and the Golden Globes.
It is possible that the Oscars will give White a nomination for his performance as Bruce Springsteen partially as a make-goodfor the snub, which saw the Best Supporting Actor award ultimately go to Robert Downey Jr. forOppenheimer. TheIron Manstar beat out fellow nominees Sterling K. Brown forAmerican Fiction, Ryan Gosling forBarbie, Robert De Niro forKillers of the Flower Moon, and Mark Ruffalo forPoor Things.
What’s Standing Against Jeremy Allen White’s Oscar Chances
The 2025-2026 Season Is Competitive
While there is a strong case for theanticipated 2025 moviepotentially winning Jeremy Allen White his first Oscar and ending this negative streak for music biopics at the Oscars, he still has to face several hurdles. Even if he wins the nomination,the fact that theDeliver Me from Nowherestar is only 34 years old at the time of writing could work against him, as the Best Actor award has not gone to anyone under 40 since Rami Malek’s win forBohemian Rhapsodyin 2019, making for yet another Oscars streak of more than half a decade.
[Current predictions indicate] that the award will go to Willem Dafoe for the Kent Jones dramaLate Fame…
The star would also be facing strong competition. WhileVariety’s Best Actor 2026 predictions do placeJeremy Allen Whitein the category, they are currently predicting that the award will go to Willem Dafoe for the Kent Jones dramaLate Fame. Their other predicted nominees are Michael B. Jordan forSinners, Jesse Plemons forBugonia, and Dwayne Johnson forThe Smashing Machine. If these predictions are accurate, the latter especially could steal votes from White, asJohnson is almost unrecognizable as real-life MMA fighter Mark Kerrin the Benny Safdie sports drama.
