The Academy Awards stand at the pinnacle of repute for every and anyone associated with the art of making films. In 2024, the nominations have heated the atmosphere with ten movies, the maximum possible, vying for the Best Picture Award. In the meantime, several acting stalwarts have also found themselves pitched against one another, in line to create history or mark their first-ever win. Among them, Mark Ruffalo boasts his fourth Best Supporting Actor Oscars nod with Poor Things and remains set to grace the event with his presence.

As he stays on course to compete for his first win, here is a look down at his first-ever attendance at the coveted event.

Mark Ruffalo came only to “support” at his first-ever Oscars red carpet

One of the most versatile actors in Hollywood, Mark Ruffalo, received his first Oscar nomination with 2011’s The Kids Are All Right. However, he marked his first Academy Awards attendance years before, when he landed alongside his then-pregnant wife, Sunrise Coigney, on March 25, 2001, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Donning a black tuxedo, a white shirt, and a golden tie, he complemented his wife’s black gown and sat on the third tier as the others “were too expensive.”

In a March 2024 clip by Variety, the actor recalled those details. He laid bare that he and Coigney attended only to “support” Laura Linney and Kenneth Lonergan for their flick, You Can Count on Me. The actor also revealed wearing a “lent” tux as it did not need to get dry-cleaned. Playing Terry Prescott, Mark Ruffalo’s role in the same movie stood as that of a supporting actor at the hands of Lonergan, who also wrote his stage breakout role with This Is Our Youth.

Years later, however, he still faces tough competition in the upcoming awards as well, from one of his long-time collaborators.

Ruffalo and Poor Things set to face fierce contenders

Playing Duncan Wedderburn, Mark Ruffalo graciously accompanied Emma Stone’s character in 2023’s Poor Things, landing him his fourth Oscar nomination. Praised for spot-on comedic timing, his eccentric and flamboyant performance in a script laced with witty dialogues and satirical humor, the actor shed past his usual serious roles to stand a chance to compete against his long-time MCU fellow actor, Robert Downey Jr., who already stands on a good fitting to win with Oppenheimer.

Regardless, Poor Things remains on a strong route to success with eleven nominations at the 2024 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Furthermore, Emma Stone has quite literally led the way for the movie’s recent winning streak as she herself contends for her next Best Actress Oscar after 2017’s La La Land, extending a support hand to Ruffalo.

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