Julie Christie Favorite to Win 2008 Oscar for Best Actress

Great Britain will surely be cheering on its representative for this year's Oscars as Julie Christie's betting odds to win "Best Actress" at the 2008 Academy Awards has been listed at -310, a surefire favorite among oddsmakers.  You can view Academy Awards betting odds here for most major categories

Christie has been around the film scene for a few decades now.  Diehard film fans may remember her as Lara in Doctor Zhivago.

Christie made a brief appearance in the third Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), playing Madame Rosmerta. That same year, she also appeared in two other high-profile films: Wolfgang Petersen's Troy, and Marc Forster's Finding Neverland, in which she played Kate Winslet's mother. The latter performance earned Christie a BAFTA nomination as supporting actress in film.

Christie's latest portrayal is the female lead in Away From Her, a film about a long-married Canadian couple coping with the wife's Alzheimer's disease. Based on the Alice Munro short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain", the movie is the first feature film directed by Christie's sometime co-star, Canadian actress Sarah Polley. She only took the role, she says, as Polley is her friend. On her part, Polley said that Christie liked her script but initially turned it down as she was ambivalent about acting. It took several months of persuasion by Polley before Christie finally accepted the role, which was written with her in mind.

Debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 2006 as part of the TIFF's Gala showcase, Away From Her drew rave reviews from the trade press, including the Hollywood Reporter, and the four Toronto dailies. The critics singled out the performances of Christie and her co-star, Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent, and Polley's assured direction.[citation needed] Her luminous performance created an "Oscar buzz", leading the distributor, Lions Gate Films, who bought the film at the TIFF to release the film in 2007 in order to build up momentum during the awards season.

On December 5, 2007, Christie won the Best Actress Award from the National Board of Review for her performance in Away From Her.[5] She also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama, the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role - Motion Picture, and a Genie Award nomination for the same film. On January 22, 2008, Christie received her fourth Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for the 80th Academy Awards.

This is Julie Christie's 4th Oscar nomination. 

Other tidbits about Julie Christie:

Christie has turned down many leading roles in films such as They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, Anne of the Thousand Days and The Greek Tycoon. Christie also signed on to play the female lead in American Gigolo opposite Richard Gere, however when Gere dropped out and John Travolta was cast in the role, Christie too dropped out from the project. Gere changed his mind and took back the role, however it was too late for Christie as her part was already taken by Lauren Hutton. Julie Christie also had to drop out of the leading role in Agatha due to breaking her wrist whilst roller-skating; the part was filled by Vanessa Redgrave.

Betting on the 2008 Academy Awards is hot and Gambling911.com is now recommending that all bets be placed prior to Sunday's big show since online gambling websites are anticipating a surge in traffic and potential crashes of servers come Sunday February 24.  Open an online betting account here.

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Jordan Bach, Gambling911.com

Originally published February 17, 2008 4:37 pm EST

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