'Big Bang Theory' Star Is Getting Oscar Buzz After His Latest Movie Role

By Stephen Andrew

Nearly three years after The Big Bang Theory ended, one of the show's stars is getting some Oscar buzz surrounding their latest movie role. Simon Helberg, who played aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz on Big Bang Theory, recently delivered a captivating performance as The Accompanist/Conductor, in Annette, a 2021 musical psychological drama film that also stars Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard. The film has been garnering a lot of awards buzz, with Cotillard being nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical at the 79th Golden Globe Awards.

Helberg's name has been making the rounds as well, with many feeling like he deserves an Acadamy Award nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category. After actress Melanie Lynskey (Two and Half Men) sent out a sweet birthday message for Helberg on Twitter, film journalist Brian Tallerico retweeted it and added, "FYC: Best Supporting Actor." This sparked some passionate responses, including one from Lynskey, who replied, "I think this performance is astonishing, and he deserves that nomination so much!" Someone else added, "YES he is on the shortlist that I threw together earlier today -- his scenes are the best parts of the movie!"

"It's hard to think of many films like it," Helberg said of Annette in a previous interview with Gold Derby. "So that, on the face of it, is incredibly appealing." He went on to explain that he put in "a tremendous amount" of effort into researching his orchestra conductor role. 

"I poured through these orchestral scores, I studied with a singing coach and the puppeteers on the set worked with us," Helberg said. He also shared that the film's director Leos Carax was very firm in his approach to getting the scenes just right. "There just wasn't really a lot of room for error," the actor recalled, "and I'd say the impossible was always being asked of us."

Elaborating on his character's relationship with Cotillard's character, Ann, Helberg offered some insight into how The Accompanist felt about Ann and her child with Henry McHenry (Driver). "For me, it was all about protecting this little girl," Helberg explained. "There is a pursuit of love in this film, I think, from all these characters, and of being loved and to determine whether you're worthy of being loved." Annette is currently streaming on Amazon Prime, where subscribers of the service can watch it anytime at no additional fee.

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