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Andrea Riseborough 'not entirely sure how' she achieved Best Actress Oscar nomination

Andrea Riseborough has reacted to her 2023 Oscar nomination for Best Actress.

After the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this year's nominees for Best Actress, the To Leslie star responded to her surprise nomination following a celebrity-backed awards campaign.

"I'm astounded," Andrea, 41, told Deadline in a statement. "It's such an unexpected ray of light. It was so hard to believe it might ever happen because we really hadn't been in the running for anything else."

She continued, "Even though we had a lot of support, the idea it might actually happen seemed so far away."

The other nominees for 2023's Best Actress included Cate Blanchett, Ana de Armas, Michelle Williams, and Michelle Yeoh.

"The response we've had all along has been so personal from people," Andrea added of the film's critical success generally. "You judge Leslie in some moments, you identify with her in others, and you go on so many journeys. It felt like there was a scope for it to touch so many people."

She summarised, "It felt like the most natural thing in the world to do, to keep talking about it even if people weren't very interested in it because as soon as they watched the film, they became instantly interested and couldn't shake off the story. The film really drove itself in that way."

To Leslie, directed by Michael Morris, had grossed $23,300 (£18,900) at the box office in the United States as of November 2022.

The plot revolves around a single mother (played by Riseborough) who succumbs to alcoholism after spending all of her lottery winnings. When a motel owner gives her a job, she realises she has a chance to change her life.