Adam McKay, the 50-year-old American Director, has been nominated in the Best Director category at the 91st Academy Awards for his political drama VICE. McKay is competing with the likes of Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman), Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite), Paweł Pawlikowski (Cold War) and Alfonso Cuarón (Roma) for the award this year.  Oscars 2019 Best Director Predictions: From Alfonso Cuarón, Yorgos Lanthimos to Spike Lee, Who Will Win The Trophy at 91st Academy Awards.

Adam McKay, born in the year 1968, is also a screenwriter and producer. McKay started his career as a writer for Saturday Night Live and was a writer for the show from 1995 to 2001. Adam McKay's first film as a director was the comedy film Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004). He also wrote and produced the film. Spike Lee Nominated For Oscars 2019 Best Director Category for BlacKkKlansman: All about Lee and His Chances of Winning at 91st Academy Awards.

McKay earned his first nomination in the Oscars for his 2015 film The Big Short, which is a screen adaptation of the Michael Lewis book. McKay was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for his work in the film. He won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, but lost out in the Director's category. Pawel Pawlikowski Nominated For Oscars 2019 Best Director Category for Cold War: All about Pawlikowski and His Chances of Winning at 91st Academy Awards.

McKay has now been nominated in the Best Director category for his 2018 political drama VICE, which is his latest release. The film Vice is based on the life of Dick Cheney, who was Vice President to George W Bush- the 43rd President of the United States. Yorgos Lanthimos Nominated For Oscars 2019 Best Director Category For The Favourite: All About Yorgos Lanthimos And His Chances of Winning at 91st Academy Awards.

The film is an attempt to produce the portrait of Dick Cheney, the man who is credited with changing the history of the United States and that of the world after 9/11 terrorist attack on US. Alfonso Cuarón Nominated for Oscars 2019 Best Director Category for Roma: All About Cuarón and His Chances to Win at 91st Academy Awards.

Oscar Potential:

McKay's direction and finesse has been praised and Vice has earned the director a worthy nomination. VICE's strength is its political consciousness, the speed of the film, the brilliant performances of the actors and how silence is used in the film by director Adam McKay. However, concerns have been raised on the accuracy of certain facts and scenes and the film lags behind when compared to other nominated films such as Roma, The Favourite and Black Panther. Therefore, Adam McKay's chances of winning the Academy Award for Best Director looks bleak and it would be surprising if he wins the Award.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 24, 2019 09:59 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).