Andrea Riseborough’s performance in “To Leslie” is invoilable. She delivers a masterful performance as an insolvent wanderer drowning in the shallow end of a vodka bottle.

Riseborough gives one of the best performances of the year. She completely disappears in the role, which is reminiscent of Charlize Theron’s turn in “Monster” and even Christian Bale ‘s in “The Fighter.”

She didnt “steal” her nom from any other actress.

Is the Best Leading Actress (BLA) category habitually dominated by white actresses — sure. The category seems to singularly celebrate the performances of white actresses over their WOC counterparts.

The last and only Black actress ever to breakthrough and win in the BLA category remains Halle Berry — 21 years ago for “Monsters Ball.”

An Asian actress has never won an Oscar®️ for BLA. That’s not equity and inclusion — not in the slightest.

The BLA 5 are selected by ranked choice balloting within the Acting Branch of The Academy. The eligible voters (just over 1100 members) are predominantly constituted of white actors.

Are FYC campaigns cutthroat? They are. Did Michelle Williams muscle her way into the category? Absolutely. I personally think Ana de Armas’ portrayal of Marilyn Monroe was impeachable. For what it’s worth, her FYC campaign was effective — so she got the nom.

All things considered, Riseborough isn’t the problem. Sure, the system is designed to favor performances by white actresses — that’s a fact. But that doesn’t diminish her powerful performance.

That said, I still believe that Michelle Yeoh will win — and she should win.