Jennifer Lawrence Belting Motown? Seth MacFarlane as Harold Hill? See Six Surprising Oscar Noms Who Could Star in a Musical

Attention Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway and the cast of the Les Miz movie: We’ve had enough of your bragging. Sure, you sang live, cut your hair, doggy paddled around in freezing water and starved yourselves half to death to earn your Oscar nods. We get it. But before Clive Davis scoops up the entire cast to star in a revival of My Fair Fantine, we’ve got a few other Oscar nominees we’d love to see in a Broadway musical. From Seth MacFarlane’s quick-witted patter to Bradley Cooper’s hilarious dance moves, let’s take advantage of this untapped talent!


Seth MacFarlane — “Trouble”
We’ve been wanting Oscar host and Best Original Song nominee Seth MacFarlane to make his Broadway debut in The Music Man since we saw his hilarious parody of “Shipoopi” on Family Guy. And since he’s also already performed “The Sadder But Wiser Girl,” MacFarlane doesn’t even really need to audition. In fact, he should pull an Alan Cumming and play all the roles.
Singing: 9.9 Showmanship: 9.8


Jennifer Lawrence — “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”
Sure, Best Actress nominee J-Law is just singing along to the radio in this clip from The Poker House, but we can tell the Silver Linings Playbook star’s got some potential. Give her a few lessons with Liz Caplan and she might score a spot in the Motown ensemble.
Singing: 5.6 Showmanship: 8.2


Daniel Day-Lewis — “I Can’t Make This Movie”
OK, we know y’all already saw the first half of Nine on Netflix, but let’s revisit Lincoln Best Actor nominee Daniel Day-Lewis as a singer, shall we? Apparently he hasn’t set foot onstage since 1989, when he saw visions of his dead father while playing Hamlet in London. Daniel, it’s been over 20 years, why don’t you give a lighthearted musical a shot? We promise we won’t make you star in Ghost.
Singing: 7.8 Showmanship: 9.6


Joaquin Phoenix — “Jackson”
Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar-nominated turn in Walk the Line is old news, but what ever happened to his seemingly inevitable Broadway debut? What, he’s too busy growing homeless guy beards, making weird documentaries and earning Oscar noms for The Master? And don’t even get us started on the super-talented Reese Witherspoon. Hello, people! Broadway is beckoning!
Singing: 8.9 Showmanship: 9.7


Bradley Cooper — “We Wanna Know All About Steve”
Does anyone actually own the DVD of the critically panned All About Steve? Yeah, we didn’t think so. But if you did, you’d know there’s a ridiculous duet with Silver Linings Playbook nominee Bradley Cooper and his co-star Ken Jeong on the movie’s special features. Sure, Cooper’s starred on Broadway before, but these amazing dance moves belong in a silly musical comedy immediately. On the Town, perhaps?
Singing: 3.2 Showmanship: 9.4


Amy Adams — “Me Party”
After her hair-raising Shakespeare in the Park debut in Into the Woods, we thought for sure The Master nominee Amy Adams would be walking the Broadway boards by now. Like Anne Hathaway, she’s proven she can sing live, and her high kicks in the adorable Muppets song “Me Party” make her an even more serious contender. Besides, anyone who can sing a duet with Miss Piggy and not get upstaged has major star quality.
Singing: 8.8 Showmanship: 9.6