Glenn Close is poised to enter this elite circle of Hollywood icons

The actress will become the 25th Triple Crown winner if she scoops an Oscar next month

Glenn Close poses with her Best Actress award for her role in 'The Wife' at the 2019 Critics' Choice Awards. Reuters

It’s a prestigious club that boasts Helen Mirren, Frances McDormand and Al Pacino among its ranks, and the Triple Crown of Acting is on the brink of welcoming its newest member.

The title, bestowed upon stars that have won an Academy Award, Emmy Award and Tony Award in the acting categories, could go to Glenn Close, should the Fatal Attraction icon walk away with an Oscar next month.

The American screen icon is hotly tipped to score a nod in the Best Actress category for her turn in The Wife, with nominations for this year's Academy Awards set to be released on January 22. The 71-year-old took home both a Critics' Choice Award and a Golden Globe award earlier this month for her performance in the 2017 drama, which focuses on the relationship between a Nobel Prize winner and his spouse, played by Close.

Close, in fact, tied with A Star is Born's Lady Gaga for top actress at last night's Critics' Choice Awards, with both actresses handed trophies for their performances. Stepford Wives star Close pipped Gaga (born Stefani Germanotta) to the gong at the Globes a week earlier, with both predicted to score nominations for the Oscars, which will take place on Sunday, February 24.

Close has previously been nominated six times for the Academy Awards, for roles in films such as Dangerous Liaisons, The Natural and The Big Chill. The star has taken home Tonys for stage roles in Sunset Boulevard (1995), Death and the Maiden (1992) and The Real Thing (1984). When it comes to her work on the small screen, Close has Emmys for her work in Damages (2008 and 2009) and TV movie Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story (1995).

'We should all be up here together'

On Sunday evening, Close paid tribute to her Critics' Choice co-winner, Lady Gaga, backstage, revealing they were "proud to be in this room together". "I was thinking that… the world kind of pits us against each other in this profession. And I know from all the women in this category, and I think I can speak for all the women in this room, we celebrate each other."

The 101 Dalmatians star also had high praise for her category nominees at the Golden Globes, as she received a standing ovation for her win.

"I am so honoured to be with my category sisters and we've gotten to know each other a little bit so far and I can't wait to spend more time with you," she said in a tear-jerking speech. "Everything that you did this year or you're here for is … We all should be up here together, that's all I can say."

The Triple Crown was last awarded to Women in Love's Glenda Jackson in 2018, while Fences star Viola Davis scooped the title in 2018. An EGOT, however, is awarded to stars who also have a Grammy to their name, with Whoopi Goldberg, John Legend and Audrey Hepburn among the stars to have taken home trophies at all four awards ceremonies.

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