'The Girl' who won an Oscar?

Reports are filtering out of Hollywood that there is some growing talk of Swedish actress Noomi Rapace, who expertly plays Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish-language films of Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy books (pictured in character, right), being put forward for an Oscar nomination.

As reported by Deadline and Hollywood News, the first film - Män som hatar kvinnor (aka the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) - is apparently eligible for next year's Oscars as it was released for a qualifying run in a Los Angeles County theater in March. You can read my review of the film here.

As I said last December, "In terms of acting, I thought Noomi Rapace was brilliant as Lisbeth Salander. She conveyed the computer hacker’s conflict, confusion, anger, and uniqueness (amongst other things) exceptionally well through glances, gestures, and other non-speaking moments – not just scripted dialogue. Like the best performances, I never saw it as someone acting as Lisbeth Salander, rather Rapace was Lisbeth Salander. "

Honestly, I can't think of a female acting performance in a film in the past year, that I've seen, that comes close to Rapace as Salander. If she is indeed eligible, it would be absolute travesty if the Academy overlooked her for a nomination.

However, already there is all sorts of online chatter about whether some Hollywood power brokers and big studio Sony Pictures might try to quash such a move (or ensure Rapace wouldn't win, even if she was nominated), as it could potentially undermine their own attempts to bring their English-language versions of the films to the big screen. All fun and games eh?

Rapace (pictured left, in her real life 'non-Lisbeth' mode) has already won the Swedish equivalent of the Oscar for playing Salander, and is quite the up and coming young actress in general.

She is reportedly currently in Hollywood, and having talks with various studios about her film career. She is rumoured to be in the running for roles in films such as Mission Impossible 4, and the Sherlock Holmes sequel.

Whether she is (deservedly) nominated for the Oscar or not, Rapace has certainly left some pretty big shoes to fill for the actress that takes on the Lisbeth role in David Fincher's remake - which as of this week is reportedly Rooney Mara, "a virtually unknown actress whose profile is so low that even her age is being hotly debated (she is, depending on who you believe, either 24 or 25)".

"In landing top billing in the film, which will open next Christmas, Mara beat off competition from an extraordinary array of stars. Everyone from Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman to Carey Mulligan and Emma Watson has featured on the list of names being tipped for the job," reported the New Zealand Herald two days ago. "Mia Wasikowska, the protagonist in Tim Burton's recent Alice in Wonderland, was among the final half-dozen contenders, though she did not sign a test-screening deal. Four finalists are understood to have spent recent weeks in auditions with the film's director, David Fincher, who will begin shooting on location in Sweden next month."

So, what do you think of Noomi Rapace being talked about for an Oscar nomination? Of young Rooney Mara taking on the role for Fincher's version? Of the Hollywood remake in general? Thoughts and comments welcome.