Hollywood has a long history of dramatic and Oscar-worthy divorce stories and performances. Just think about some of the award-winning films the Academy appears to swoon over: Kramer vs Kramer (1979), The War of the Roses (1989), The Squid and the Whale (2005) and, most recently, Marriage Story (2019). This last tale, in particular, is openly regarded as a love story, yet it is Laura Dern’s portrayal of a ruthless divorce lawyer who is celebrated with Hollywood’s top prize – her first-ever Oscar. Although the divorcing couple were amicable, loving and generally agreeable, they were still required to mortgage their home and manoeuvre through a highly antagonistic and confrontational process.
