The mysterious Roderick Jaynes Doe

An accomplished guy named Roderick Jaynes is this year’s front-runner for the Film Editing Oscar. Why should you care? Well, this is his second nod (his first was for 1996’s Fargo). And, oh yeah, he doesn’t actually exist — the name is a pseudonym for Joel and Ethan Coen, directors of No Country for Old Men. So what will happen, exactly, if good ol’ Roderick is called to the stage on Feb. 24? According to an Academy spokesperson, the show’s producers haven’t decided how an acceptance speech would play out. There are a few historical precedents: For instance, ”John S. Toldy” won an award in 1940 for co-writing Arise, My Love (Toldy was a pen name for Hans Székely), and ”Robert Rich” won a statuette in 1956 for co-writing The Brave One (Rich was a front for blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who won a 1953 Oscar under yet another alias). Miramax, the studio behind No Country, says both brothers would likely go on stage to accept the award, but maybe neither should. Let Roderick continue to be a man of mystery.