Earlier today Gold Derby‘s Tom O’Neil was telling me I have to make sure that my Gold Derby predictions square with my HE Oscar Balloon charts. He was focusing in particular on the Best Actress graph that I posted last Saturday in which I included Amy Schumer‘s Trainwreck performance in fifth or sixth place. Because I felt like it. Because now is the time for plugging your personal favorites every so often. I don’t give a damn if anyone agrees with me or not. I’m not placing bets at a dog track. It’s September and Schumer moved me, and so I included her. I’m just saying she deserves a shout-out. I don’t care if you don’t agree. I know what I know.

Earlier today David Poland tweeted that my Best Actress chart was “idiotic.” You know what’s idiotic or at least seriously lame? Ignoring your own aesthetic instincts so you can appear to be “right” in predicting likely favorites in late fucking September. I’ll play the prediction game to some extent but I reserve the right to promote exceptional work, regardless of how likely this or that choice may seem to Sasha Stone or Glenn Whipp or Scott Mantz. There’s plenty of time to start narrowing things down in late October, November and December.

You know who else deserves a seat at the conversational table? Freeheld and 99 Homes costar Michael Shannon for Best Supporting Actor. Why? Because he’s always exceptional, and because I think he stole 99 Homes from Andrew Garfield, and because a few people have told me he also steals Freeheld. (I still haven’t seen it.) What are you saying, I can’t be a Shannon supporter unless Kris Tapley or Greg Ellwood or Pete Howell agree with me? To hell with that. If you can’t wear your heart on your sleeve now, when can you?

That said, I had to nudge Schumer out this morning after realizing yesterday that Room and Brie Larson will be staying the course.