By Tom Long
The Detroit News
A few months back, no one really expected the frontrunners for this year’s best actor and actress Oscars to even be nominated.
George Clooney seemed to be ahead in the actor race for “Up in the Air,” with Colin Firth right behind for “A Single Man.” And Meryl Streep was the foregone frontrunner for Best Actress for her role as Julia Child in “Julie and Julia,” simply because she’s Meryl Streep.
Dark horses always seem to move to the front in at least one major Oscar race a year. This year, once-dark horses are dominating both top acting races.