Hollywood this week is buzzing about Blanchett's portrayal of Hepburn in the Martin Scorsese-directed "The Aviator", a film about eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes.

It's the type of industry talk that can push the chameleon Australian actress all the way to the podium and a best supporting Oscar at February's 77th Academy Awards ceremony.

With Nicole Kidman's performance in "Birth" losing steam and Naomi Watts's best Oscar chance to be released in the US in late December, Blanchett emerged as Australia's top shot to claim an Academy Award.

"The industry is buzzing about Cate's portrayal of Kate," Tom O'Neil, one of America's top Oscar experts, said.

"She certainly has the momentum and buzz now. I would say she is the frontrunner for best supporting actress, but whether or not she can maintain that is something else of course."

The past week many of the Academy's 6000 voters and the 90 Golden Globes voters watched special screenings of The Aviator.

Hepburn was one of many beautiful starlets Hughes romanced and early reports say Blanchett pulled off the feisty redhead and four-time Oscar winner in the film.

O'Neil said he had spoken to numerous Academy and Golden Globes members about Blanchett's performance.

The Assassination of Richard Nixon, starring Sean Penn and opening in the US on December 29, appears to be Watts's best chance for a nomination, although she will be competing against Blanchett in the supporting category.

The film is based on the true story of a furniture salesman, played by Penn, who plotted to kill the former US president in 1974 by flying an airliner into the White House.

Watts portrays Penn's character's wife, a cocktail waitress seeking a divorce from her mixed-up husband.

Watts's performance in "We Don't Live Here Anymore" (co-stars Mark Ruffalo, Laura Dern and Peter Krause), where she plays an adulterous wife, was well received by critics, but it has rarely been mentioned in Oscar predictions.

The third Watts movie, "I Heart Huckabees", was pounded by the critics so will likely not get a look-in at Oscar.

Blanchett has another film, "The Life Aquatic" with Steve Zissou, eligible for an Oscar this season.

It's a bizarre, offbeat comedy also starring Bill Murray. Reviews have been mixed, although Blanchett's performance is deemed one of the best in the ensemble cast of Murray, Anjelica Huston, Owen Wilson and Willem Dafoe.

Hollywood would welcome an Oscar for Blanchett, a victim of one of the biggest upsets in Academy Awards history.

In 1998, Blanchett was the hot favourite to take the Best Actress statuette for Elizabeth. However, an aggressive campaign by US studio Miramax managed to swing enough votes to Gwyneth Paltrow for Shakespeare in Love.

--Indo-Asian News Service