Oscars 2016: Spotlight on Brie Larson

Brie Larson poses in the press room with the award for best actress in a motion picture - drama for “Room” at the 73rd annual Golden Globe Awards on Sunday, Jan. 10, 2016, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Brie Larson's intense performance in indie flick "The Room" has seen the American actress become one of the most likely candidates for a 2016 American Award.

Brie Larson, 26, is a dead cert for the list of five finalists for "Best Actress," set to be unveiled January 14 by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Her critically acclaimed performance in independent film "The Room" already won her a Golden Globe on January 10. The Californian actress stars as Ma, a young woman who is kidnapped and held in a room for seven years, where she is raped by her captor and bears his child.

Already a familiar face in the movie business, Brie Larson isn't so well-known to the general public, despite roles in "21 Jump Street" and "Trainwreck." But 2016 is sure to see her step into the spotlight as this year's top favorite for the "Best Actress" Academy Award, ahead of Oscars veteran Cate Blanchett. The 46-year-old Australian actress is expected to bag her seventh nomination for her role in "Carol." She won the "Best Supporting Actress" Oscar in 2005 for "The Aviator," then landed "Best Actress" in 2013 for "Blue Jasmine."

Jennifer Lawrence could impress the jury once again in a new David O. Russell flick. Picking up "Best Actress" in 2013 for her role in Russell's "Silver Linings Playbook," the "Hunger Games" star is expected to see her fourth nomination for her performance in "Joy," which already landed her "Best Actress" in a comedy at the Golden Globes on January 10. Other stars tipped to make this year's list include Saoirse Ronan -- up for her second Oscar nomination with "Brooklyn" -- and Charlotte Rampling, who could see the first nomination of her career for "45 Years." Carey Mulligan ("Suffragette"), Maggie Smith ("The Lady in the Van") and Helen Mirren ("Woman in Gold") have also been floated as outsiders.

After winning the Golden Globe for "Best Supporting Actress" for her role in "Steve Jobs," Kate Winslet is expected to be up for the Oscar too. With six Oscar nominations already to her name, the "Titanic" star is popular with the Academy. Winslet could be nominated alongside Rooney Mara, who won "Best Actress" at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2015 for her role in "Carol," Alicia Vikander ("The Danish Girl"), Jennifer Jason Leigh ("The Hateful Eight"), Jane Fonda ("Youth") and Kristen Stewart, who won a French César in 2015 for "Clouds of Sils Maria."