LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Hollywood icon George Clooney has written off his chances of winning the best actor prize at Sunday's Academy Awards, branding himself the "Hillary Clinton of the Oscars."


The 46-year-old heart-throb, who is nominated for his performance in the legal drama "Michael Clayton", told Time magazine that he expects the statuette to go to Ireland's Daniel Day-Lewis.

"For me, it's like being Hillary Clinton," Clooney told Time in its latest edition due out on Friday. "If it weren't for Barack Obama, it would have been a very good year."

"I thought Daniel Day-Lewis had the best performance of the year," added Clooney, referring to the British-born star's portrayal of a tyrannical oil prospector in "There Will Be Blood."

Clooney said he also expects Joel and Ethan Coen's gritty crime movie "No Country for Old Men" to pip "Michael Clayton" for the best picture prize. The Coen brothers were also likely to scoop the best director honors, he added.