Best Supporting Actor

	Chris Cooper Adaptation He's already won the Golden Globe for his performance as orchid thief John Laroche in Adaptation, which makes Chris Cooper a favorite to take home Oscar gold. Here we see Cooper (Lone Star, A Time to Kill) looking like he's never looked before. But don't be fooled by Cooper's radically different physical appearance in the film; underneath the thinning hair and missing front teeth was an astoundingly complex performance, and the very fact that he wasn't overshadowed by Nicholas Cage and Meryl Streep is a testament to his talent.	John C. Reilly Chicago John C. Reilly has got to be one of the busiest actors around right now, having appeared in close to 30 movies since 1989. Heck, he was in three other movies this year - The Hours, Gangs of New York and The Good Girl. But it was his role as Amos Hart in Chicago that finally provided Reilly with his first Oscar nod. Sharing the screen with such heavyweights as Richard Gere and fellow nominee Renée Zellweger, Reilly held his own and even belted out a surprisingly touching number, "Mr. Cellophane".
	Ed Harris The Hours It's become a bit of a cliché to nominate actors who play dying characters, but Ed Harris' completely riveting performance in The Hours managed to transcend stereotypes. His screen time is limited, but Harris leaves an unforgettable imprint on the film - made all the more powerful by the fact that the actor lost a significant amount of weight for the role. This marks Harris' fourth nomination since 1996 (Apollo 13, The Truman Show and Pollock), which certainly makes him overdue for a trip up to that podium. But he's got some serious competition to contend with this year.	Christopher Walken Catch Me If You Can Christopher Walken has almost become a parody of himself in recent years, given that the majority of stand-up comedians can do an impression of him and he's been concentrating on comedies like The Country Bears and Kangaroo Jack (he also won an American Comedy Award in 2001 for "Funniest Male Guest" on Saturday Night Live. But there was a time when he was known for searing dramatic work (he won an Oscar for his heartbreaking performance in The Deer Hunter). His performance in Catch Me If You Can, as a father who lives through the exploits of his son, hopefully heralds a return to the type of role that made him such a compelling - and, more often than not, menacing - screen presence.
	Paul Newman Road to Perdition Believe it or not Paul Newman's never been nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. He has, however, been recognized a whopping eight times in the Best Actor category for his work in films such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Hustler to Cool Hand Luke and The Verdict. Newman finally took home the Best Actor statue in 1987 for The Color of Money, although he was given an Honorary Award the year before. But it's his performance as aging gangster John Rooney in Road to Perdition that's allowed Newman to garner this nomination. Acting alongside contemporary giants like Tom Hanks and Jude Law, Newman delivers a performance that's completely hypnotic from start to finish.