Irish actor Cillian Murphy.Getty Images
Cillian Murphy is the second most searched-for 2024 Academy Award-nominated actor, according to a new study from NoDepositRewards.
Murphy, a native of Co Cork, landed in second place in the new study with an average of 1,247,100 Google searches per month.
The "Oppenheimer" star scored a nod for Best Actor - his first-ever Oscar nomination - for his role as J. Robert Oppenheimer and is a favorite to win the award.
Murphy reached unprecedented levels of fame after starring as the man behind the atomic bomb, and the strength of his performance undoubtedly contributed to "Oppenheimer’s" huge critical and commercial success, amounting to 13 nominations in total.
The recent study conducted by NoDepositRewards looked at the Google search volume popularity of 20 nominated actors and actresses from the past year to determine who garnered the most buzz amid their performances.
The researchers looked at the figures for every month from the past year across the US and calculated a monthly average to provide a ranking.
Not surprisingly, Murphy was joined by two of his "Oppenheimer" co-stars in the list of the top ten most Googled 2024 Oscar-nominated actors - Robert Downey Jr ranked fifth while Emily Blunt ranked seventh.
Elsewhere on the list are Emma Stone (sixth) and Mark Ruffalo (tenth), the stars of "Poor Things," which is produced by the Dublin-based Element Pictures.
Topping the list is Ryan Gosling, the star of "Barbie," who is joined by his co-star America Ferrera later in the list in eighth place. Of course, not making the list is Margot Robbie, who was snubbed in the acting categories.
Elsewhere on the list is Robert De Niro ("Killers of the Flower Moon") in third, Bradley Cooper ("Maestro") in fourth, and Jodie Foster ("Nyad") in ninth.
The most Googled 2024 Oscar-nominated actors
- Ryan Gosling
- Cillian Murphy
- Robert De Niro
- Bradley Cooper
- Robert Downey Jr
- Emma Stone
- Emily Blunt
- America Ferrera
- Jodie Foster
- Mark Ruffalo
Mason Jones of NoDepositRewards.com commented: “This new data cements the immense popularity of some of the Oscar nominees and demonstrates how many huge stars have been nominated this year.
“It is clear that the performances from these actors got many people talking and wanting to dive deeper into their filmographies.
“In particular, the nominations are notable for the love 'Barbenheimer' received – a quarter of the acting nominations are performances from either 'Barbie' or 'Oppenheimer,' although Margot Robbie’s omission was unexpected.
“This just goes to show that commercially successful blockbusters can also be huge awards contenders, despite their reputation for being typically low-brow.
He added: “Overall, the Academy has recognized a diverse range of performances from both returning and first-time nominees.
"With the ceremony a month and a half away, it will be exciting to see how the race unfolds and who ultimately takes home the top prizes.”