Demi Moore, the unexpected star of 2024 on the path to potential Oscar recognition

She had considered giving it all up. Despite enjoying maturity at 61, Demi Moore had not had the opportunity this century to enjoy the fruits of a success that had made her the most popular and best-paid actress in the world during the 1990s, when she was paid a then-record fee of $12.5 million for her role in Striptease. “I went through a period of even questioning whether this is what I should still be doing. In the last four years or so, I felt that it was a personal question that I wanted to explore and see. Was this where I should be putting my energy?” Moore told Entertainment Weekly in a recent interview. But she remained patient — “When you plant seeds, you wait to see what grows” — and is now reaping the rewards. The Substance, her new film, proved a phenomenon at Cannes and Moore’s name is already entering the Oscars conversation.

“The Demi Moore renaissance is upon us,” read one review, with The Substance thrilling critics and receiving an 11-minute ovation at Cannes, where director Coralie Fargeat landed the award for Best Screenplay. Described as a brutal nightmare of full-gore horror, bloody and explicit, the film tells the story of a faded screen star who, in an attempt to fight against the tyranny of youth and aesthetic pressure, resorts to an experimental treatment in search of a better version of herself. Emerging star Margaret Qualley and another staple of 1990s cinema, Dennis Quaid, complete the cast, who described Moore’s return to the front line of the industry as “inspirational” and predicted “an incredible third act of her life.” Both the BBC and IndieWire have described Moore’s performance as the best of her four-decade career.

The excitement surrounding Moore’s return shows no signs of abating anytime soon given the chronic sympathy that exists in the Los Angeles hills for a good redemption story. Every year, when rumors arise about possible candidates entering the Oscars race, there is one profile that always gathers a groundswell of popular support: that of the mainstream star who has never before achieved the favor of the academy and who the public wants to see done justice. Brendan Fraser, Jamie Lee Curtis, Matthew McConaughey and most recently Robert Downey Jr. are proof of the power of the public during awards season and Moore, buoyant after her triumph at Cannes and for her celebrated work in the series Feud: Capote vs The Swans, seems willing to give herself body and soul to assume the role at next year’s ceremony. Despite two Golden Globe nominations, she has never been up for an Oscar before.

The star of 1990s classics including Ghost and A Few Good Men has not been seen in Cannes in almost three decades and her appearance has turned heads. After dazzling at the recent Met Gala and being seen alongside Anne Wintour at New York Fashion Week, Moore has been described by the specialized press as the “brightest” star of this year’s Cannes festival, channeling like no one else the glamor of one of Hollywood’s golden eras. Boasting her spectacular physique and her assertive extra-long hair — “I remember hearing someone say that when women get older they shouldn’t have long hair and it stuck in my mind” — the actor took full advantage of her seven days on the Côte d’Azur, sponsoring the Chopard trophy for emerging talent and presenting the exclusive amFAR charity gala, silencing those who dared to interrupt her introduction speech for the award-winning Cher. Even her inseparable chihuahua Pilaf won a prize. “He is the star of the festival without a doubt,” said Vogue France. Comparing the event with the excitement “a girl getting ready for the first time” feels, Moore has been busy on her Instagram account, which in 18 months has gone from three to over five million followers, clearly touched by the affection she has received: “It has been a dream to return.”

It has been a long time since Moore was tabloid fodder over her tumultuous divorce with actor Ashton Kutcher – she found out from the press that her husband was cheating on her – or since she sparked controversy over her alleged aesthetic touch-ups while attending a Fendi fashion show as a guest model in 2021. None of this was new for her. At the end of the 1990s, at the peak of her fame, she decided to temporarily withdraw from Hollywood to escape the scrutiny generated by her breakup with Bruce Willis, father of her three daughters, and the sexist attacks of an industry that was not receptive to her calls for a salary commensurate with her status. She was given the nickname “Gimme Moore” and, according to Moore herself, she was subsequently “punished” for her alleged greed. Although peers such as Gwyneth Paltrow have subsequently vindicated the actress’s sacrifice, arguing that “she was the first to fight for equal pay and we all benefited from it,” the Los Angeles studios would not open their doors to her again with the same enthusiasm. At 44, Moore herself recognized herself as a victim of ageism, accepting supporting roles in productions light years away from the impact of her early films. “It’s been a challenging few years, being the age I am. Almost to the point where I felt like, well, they don’t know what to do with me. I am not 20. Not 30. There aren’t that many good roles for women over 40. A lot of them don’t have much substance, other than being someone’s mother or wife,” she said at the time.

A self-destructive spiral ended with Moore entering a rehabilitation facility in 2012 but, more than a decade later, she says that she feels “more alive and present” than ever. After coming clean about past addictions, trauma, and abuse in her best-selling memoir Inside Out and no longer burdened by a troubled past, Moore decided to start from scratch by venturing into the textile industry as a shareholder and ambassador of the swimwear brand Andie Swim, and by starring in Dirty Diane, an erotic podcast with a feminist perspective. On a personal level, she says she enjoys being single after her last known relationship, with the prestigious Swiss chef Daniel Humm, ended in 2022. The artist has devoted recent years to Willis, after the irreversible frontotemporal dementia he was diagnosed with saw him retire from public life. Moore frequently visits the actor, sharing tender snapshots of them and their daughters and grandchildren, and she maintains a very close relationship with Willis’ current wife, Emma Heming. Sources close to Moore told InTouch magazine that her ex-husband’s struggle has given her a new perspective on life and she is already preparing for the “emotional goodbye” to her former partner of thirteen years. Perhaps the stage at the next Oscars gala is the ideal moment for Moore to pay a well-deserved tribute.

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