Actresses in Lesbian Sex Scenes and the Academy Award for Best Actress: Will Annette Bening or Natalie Portman Be Added to the Shortlist?

It looks like actresses starring in lesbian sex scenes in the new Academy Award hotness this year, as Natalie Portman and Annette Bening look primed to procure positions on the list of Best Actress nominees. But neither one would be the first to win the Best Actress Academy Award for starring in lesbian sex scenes.

So which actresses have already been there, done that? Well, "Boys Don't Cry" star Hillary Swank's groundbreaking performance of 1999 as a transgender man is definitely one of the most memorable and moving Best Actress Oscar wins. In the film, Hillary Swank's character Brandon begins a relationship with a young woman (Chloe Sevigny) who is unaware that Brandon was born a woman. The movie contains a few explicit sex scenes, but while two actresses sharing an intimate moment on screen might be considered a "lesbian" scene, it's iffy here, since Hillary Swank's character identifies herself as male.

Charlize Theron is another actress who went through a great transformation to win her Best Actress Academy Award. However, instead of changing her gender, she drastically changed her appearance by putting on weight and getting all uglied up to portray prostitute/serial killer Aileen Wuornos in 2003 film "Monster". Her lesbian sex scene in that movie co-starred Christina Ricci, and was quite a bit tamer than Hillary Swank's and Chloe Sevigny's.

So with proof positive that actresses starring in lesbian sex scenes can win the Academy Award for Best Actress, Natalie Portman and Annette Bening are looking at quite the showdown. Natalie Portman's "Black Swan" scene with Mila Kunis was definitely steamy, but her character actually seemed to be more bisexual or bicurious. Annette Bening's character in "The Kids Are All Right" was definitely a lesbian, but the most memorable (and humorous) sex scene from the movie actually involved guy-on-guy porn.

Right now the Awards Daily website (which tracks what awards potential Oscar contenders have already received) has Annette Bening on top. She is older, and Academy voters might be looking to give her a sort of lifetime achievement award for her whole body of work. However, Natalie Portman is sitting pretty in the second slot, and the past actresses that have won after starring in lesbian scenes were both younger when they snagged their prizes (oh, and Natalie Portman being pregnant could possibly win her a few "awww!" votes).

So who which of these actresses playing career-obsessed women will win? Well, it's not guaranteed that the Best Actress Oscar will go to one of the two, but it has made this year's awards season race just as interesting as the movies they starred in.

SOURCES:
http://www.awardsdaily.com/category/oscar-buzz/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actress
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monster_(2003_film)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boys_Don%27t_Cry_(film)