How Did Delroy Lindo Beat the Odds as an Oscar Nominee?

When I spoke to Delroy Lindo last week, I asked the “Sinners” star how it felt to be the surprise of Oscar nomination morning. He responded with a question of his own.

“Why, in your mind, was I a surprise?” he asked me. “That’s not a trick question. I’m curious in terms of how the process rolls out and what your perception, as a professional, as a journalist, your perception of that process is.”

I must admit, it was a scary way to start an interview. I never want to upset or offend someone right out of the gate. While Lindo and I had a lovely conversation about his nomination and career,…