The Aussie Who Wrote ‘The Favourite’ Just Got Nominated For An Oscar

Tony McNamara has one of the most diverse and surprising CVs in Australian film and television.

He wrote and directed the Ben Lee-starring The Rage In Placid Lake, a comedy about a child of hippies who decides to throw it all away and become an insurance agent. He created Doctor Doctor, a soapy melodrama about a heart surgeon who ups sticks and moves to the country. And he’s been one of the brains behind Love My Way and The Secret Life Of Us, working on both shows as a guest writer.

But now, McNamara’s IMDB profile has just gotten stranger: he’s just been nominated for an Oscar for his work writing The Favourite.

I know this isn't representative of how the Best Picture race shakes out, but "The Favourite and Roma lead the Oscar field" is the best headline we could possibly have hoped for this morning.

— Guy Lodge (@GuyLodge) January 22, 2019

McNamara is one of two credit screenwriters on The Favourite, a Yorgos Lanthimos-directed period piece about the fluctuating affections of Queen Anne (played by Olivia Colman) and the two women determined to woo her (Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone).

It’s a strange, beautiful, frequently exceptionally funny film, not to mention as dangerous as a dash of arsenic slipped into a cup of tea.

Indeed, a lot of what makes The Favourite so exciting, aside from the assured direction of arch surrealist Lanthimos, is the script McNamara co-wrote with Deborah Davis. Set at a court full of estranged nobles who can’t stand each other, it’s a long list of all-time great insults and crude jibes.

Huge congratulations to #TheFavourite on its 10 #OscarNoms including Best Picture, Best Actress Olivia Colman, Best Director Yorgos Lanthimos, Best Supporting Actress Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, and Best Original Screenplay! pic.twitter.com/UuxLVQWm8l

— The Favourite (@the_favourite) January 22, 2019

Whether or not McNamara will actually win the Oscar is a different story. He’s up against some stiff competition: Paul Schrader, the mind behind First Reformed, is also in contention for the award, as is Alfonso Cuaron for Roma. In fact, it looks like Roma is going to sweep the awards, given that it’s picked up nominations in most major categories.

But hey, an Australian just got nominated for an Oscar! That’s something to celebrate, particularly given a well-deserving Australian actress just got rudely snubbed.