Demi Moore was bitterly disappointed to miss out on an Oscar for The Substance, but she’s dusting herself up and ready to go again with her just announced indie film Strange Arrivals – while declaring it gives her an even better chance of success this time around.

“Demi has set herself up for success teaming up with Colman Domingo, who is such a well-liked figure in the industry right now,” a source exclusively tells In Touch. “He could get an Oscar nomination for sneezing in a TikTok video. People love that guy and want to see him succeed, and after losing out on an Oscar in March after a stellar run, everybody’s rooting for Demi as well.”

Demi, 62, delivered a standout performance in 2024’s The Substance, earning her the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy at the 2025 ceremony. However, despite the buzz, the body horror film came up short at the Oscars, where Demi lost to Anora’s Mikey Madison.

The defeat didn’t slow her down — Demi is now set to star alongside Colman, 55, in Strange Arrivals, an epic romance based on the true story of Betty and Barney Hill, an interracial couple who became the first reported case of alien abduction in 1961 while returning from their honeymoon in Niagara Falls.

The source says that Demi working with Colman, who is known for his roles in films like Rustin and Sing Sing, “is like having an insurance policy that guarantees the movie will be well received, at least within industry circles.”

“That is really important to Demi because she still wants an Oscar and is ready to fight even harder for one than she did for The Substance,” the insider explains. “Thankfully, during that awards campaign, Demi kept it classy, and used her frontrunner status to stay above the fray. But at the end of the day, she went home empty-handed after coming incredibly close to winning.”

The Striptease actress is determined to not “let it happen again,” with the source emphasizing that “she really took her time in picking her big follow-up role to The Substance.”

“Demi is a smart person but when it comes to the Oscar race, teaming up with Colman is a stroke of absolute genius!” the insider adds.

In Touch previously reported in May that Demi’s friends suggested her love life may have played a role in why she was snubbed during awards season.

“It’s a little sad that Demi couldn’t find the time or the opportunity over the last few months to start a new relationship, because that might have made a difference in her awards run,” a longtime pal of the recently Oscar-nominated superstar exclusively told In Touch on May 30. “Instead, she mostly hit the red carpet with her dog and her manager, which didn’t exactly spark the imaginations of her fans.”

The close pal of the actress suggested that the buzz surrounding Demi’s new fling could’ve pushed the publicity for the film over the edge.

“Demi knows exactly what she’s missing by shunning the idea of a serious relationship and even dating right now,” the source explained. “Yeah, part of her life is a little empty but she is finding so much fulfillment in her work at the moment that she says the sacrifice, and even a little loneliness, is all worth it, even if she has nobody to really share it with.”