Get ready for some young Oscar nominees

Oscar virgins
The first-timers may also include several over-40 actors and filmmakers who could earn Oscar’s attention at long last.

Matt Dillon, now 41, has transcended his teen-star beginnings and forged a real career. His impressive incarnation of a complex, rage-filled Los Angeles policeman in “Crash” may be his most compelling performance to date — or at least the equal of his work in “Drugstore Cowboy” and “To Die For.”

David Strathairn, 56, plays the legendary newsman, Edward R. Murrow in “Good Night, Good Luck.” It’s just the latest in a series of remarkable performances that stretch back a quarter of a century, to “Return of the Secaucus Seven,” “The Brother From Another Planet” and other collaborations with writer-actor-director John Sayles.

Amanda Edwards / Getty Images "Good Night and Good Luck" star Frank Langella has never been nominated for an Oscar.

Frank Langella, 66, brings a professional’s finesse to his impersonation of CBS executive William Paley, who has a memorable showdown with Strathairn’s Murrow in “Good Night, and Good Luck.” Langella is best-known as a Broadway actor, but he’s made an impression in several movies, including the sexy 1979 version of “Dracula” and “Diary of a Mad Housewife.”

Felicity Huffman, 43, used to be best-known for her contributions to “Desperate Housewives.” That’s likely to change with her droll performance in “Transamerica,” as a transsexual who hooks up with the son she fathered long ago.

Jeff Daniels, 50, earned Golden Globe and Independent Spirit nominations for his breakthrough performance in “The Squid and the Whale.” He plays a writer and a father who has seen better days on both fronts.

Gong Li, 40, won the National Board of Review’s award for her supporting work as the bitchy Hatsumomo in “Memoirs of a Geisha.” An Oscar nomination would honor her welcome scenery-chewing in a dull film, as well as her truly distinguished career as the star of such Chinese classics as “Raise the Red Lantern” and “Farewell My Concubine.”

George Clooney, 44, could score three first-time nominations: for playing the supporting role of a betrayed CIA agent in “Syriana,” for co-writing “Good Night, and Good Luck,” and for directing “Good Night, and Good Luck.” He already has Golden Globe nominations in all three categories.

David Cronenberg, 62, has never been an Oscar favorite. His Canadian horror films were either too gross or too specialized to catch on. His only movie to be honored with an Oscar, “The Fly,” won for best makeup, though he’s directed Oscar-worthy performances by Jeremy Irons (“Dead Ringers”) and Judy Davis (“Naked Lunch”). His latest, “A History of Violence,” has become a mainstream success, and could earn him his first nomination for best director.

That’s a lot of first-timers. Clearly all of them won’t make it. It’s been a rich year.

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