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It's Christmas time, everybody! Or as my people like to call it, “why are those goys chopping down pine trees?” But that gold naked gift-giver known as Oscar Claus has yet to make his list, let alone check it twice. That's good news for some contenders who might not be considered likely nominees this year, but can't be counted out yet. While some favorites are already writing acceptance speeches, other contenders should be writing letters to Santa asking for a present, or in some cases a Christmas miracle.

There are some actors we don't need to talk about until the nominations are announced. Do you need me to explain to you why George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Christopher Plummer or Octavia Spencer are going to be nominated? If you do you clearly haven't been paying attention to the race at all this year. So I'm going to skip over the people who are definitely in, and focus on the ones on the bubble, who legitimately could go either way. What are all of those contenders asking Santa for this Christmas? Let's find out.

Best Actor:
(Sure Things: George Clooney, Jean Dujardin, Brad Pitt)

Demian Bichir is asking Santa to put a screener of A Better Life is at the top of every voter's stocking

Fortunately for Bichir, the SAG tends to match up with the Academy on Best Actor almost 100%. Unfortunately, the SAG nomination is the only precursor that has given Bichir any love. A Better Life got almost no attention when it was released in theaters, which means that unlike with higher profile contenders, Academy voters will have to go out of their way to see it. Will enough of them see it, and love it, to get him in? Bichir could travel the same route that Richard Jenkins did for his nomination for The Visitor: powerful performance in small indie movie that builds buzz thanks largely to a SAG nomination. It's worked before, so it might work again.

Leonardo DiCaprio is asking Santa to wipe the Academy's memory of everything about J. Edgar except for his performance

True, there is not a lot of love for Clint Eastwood's latest, but it seems that virtually everybody is in agreement on the excellence of DiCaprio's performance. Being nominated by both the SAG and the Golden Globes means you're pretty much a shoe-in. His only drawback is that his film, unlike the films of the three actors who are definitely in, is not going to be a Best Picture nominee.

Michael Fassbender is asking Santa for some non-puritanical Academy members

Unlike Bichir, Fassbender doesn't have to hope that people pay attention to his film. The controversy that Shame has generated has been enormously helpful for the film, both at the box-office and for the Oscars. Critics have been raving about the film and it has appeared on several top 10 lists, with more than one critic group calling out Fassbender for Best Actor. Add a SAG nomination to that and Fassbender is almost assured of a nomination, but without it, there are still questions. Mainly, is the film too controversial and sexual for the Academy?

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