As Hollywood prepares to come together for the 96th Academy Awards, it’s time to offer our late predictions for this year’s winners.
Whether it’s Lily vs. Emma in Best Actress or The Creator vs. Godzilla Minus One in Visual Effects or The Boy and the Heron vs. Spider-Verse in Animated Film, Sunday night (or Monday morning in the UK!) promises to be another spectacular event.
Here we go…
BEST PICTURE
AMERICAN FICTION
ANATOMY OF A FALL
BARBIE
THE HOLDOVERS
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
MAESTRO
OPPENHEIMER
PAST LIVES
POOR THINGS
THE ZONE OF INTEREST
WILL WIN? – OPPENHEIMER – The autobiographical epic has blasted all comers with a majority of key Best Picture victories from the Globes, to BAFTA and PGA as well as bagging Best Ensemble at the Screen Actor’s Guild. As locked for the win here as the likes of Schindler’s List and Return of the King were years before.
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER – Between its massive box-office success and multiple nominations, this should be an easy one to predict. In another year, other nominees like Anatomy of a Fall, The Holdovers and Poor Things would have been worthy favourites too.
IGNORED? – SOCIETY OF THE SNOW – The survival drama was a masterful piece of film-making that deserved as much awards traction as All Quiet on the Western Front did last year. Poor form Netflix, poor form.
BEST DIRECTOR
Jonathan Glazer, THE ZONE OF INTEREST
Yorgos Lanthimos, POOR THINGS
Christopher Nolan, OPPENHEIMER
Martin Scorsese, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Justine Triet, ANATOMY OF A FALL
WILL WIN? – Christopher Nolan – The visionary filmmaker has swept nearly every major precursor this season and deserves to join the elite of directors that have won here in the past including Wyler, Lean, Wilder, Spielberg, and Scorsese.
SHOULD WIN? – Christopher Nolan – No question. After being frustratingly snubbed for The Dark Knight years ago, it’s great to see the British helmer finally get his due. IF there is a spoiler, it could come from fellow Brit Jonathan Glazer after the recent surge of The Zone of Interest.
IGNORED? – Greta Gerwig (BARBIE) – While I wasn’t enamoured with Barbie, it’s still disappointing to see the director of 2023’s highest grossing film miss out here. Hopefully, there’s a chance of a consolation win in the Best Adapted Screenplay category!
BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening, NYAD
Lily Gladstone, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Sandra Hüller, ANATOMY OF A FALL
Carey Mulligan, MAESTRO
Emma Stone, POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – Lily Gladstone – A tough call, but a key victory at SAG gave the Indigenous actress a slight advantage that could well see her make history a’la last year’s winner Michelle Yeoh. However, there is still the possibility of Stone doubling up here after her BAFTA success last month.
SHOULD WIN?– Sandra Hüller / Emma Stone – Though Gladstone’s win would be worthy, Stone does deliver a transformative performance that took big risks from baring it all to pulling off a fine English accent. Additionally, Hüller was commanding in her film and deserved way more awards love throughout the season.
IGNORED? – Margot Robbie (BARBIE) -Like Greta, it was shameful to see the Australian star miss out on a nomination, especially after receiving key mentions at the Globes, SAG and BAFTAs. Hopefully, Margot’s Oscar dream will finally come true in the not too distant future!
BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper, MAESTRO
Colman Domingo, RUSTIN
Paul Giamatti, THE HOLDOVERS
Cillian Murphy, OPPENHEIMER
Jeffrey Wright, AMERICAN FICTION
WILL WIN? – Cillian Murphy – After all those years of mixing it up with the Peaky ‘fooking’ Blinders, the Irish star is well on course to win here for his portrayal of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer after crucial successes at the Globes, BAFTA and SAG. At this point, a Giamatti upset would certainly come as a shock!
SHOULD WIN? – Paul Giamatti – As a cranky prep school professor, the seasoned actor was marvellous in one of the most celebrated films of the year. However, significant losses at BAFTA and SAG effectively tarnished his hopes of an overdue victory.
IGNORED? – Andrew Scott (ALL OF US STRANGERS) – In such a competitive year, the Irish actor delivered a tremendous performance in one of the most overlooked films of this awards season. That BAFTA snub certainly didn’t help matters!
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Emily Blunt, OPPENHEIMER
Danielle Brooks, THE COLOR PURPLE
America Ferrera, BARBIE
Jodie Foster, NYAD
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, THE HOLDOVERS
WILL WIN? – Da’Vine Joy Randolph – Easily the most locked to win out of the four acting categories. And a very deserving one too!
SHOULD WIN? – Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The character actress provided warmth with her role as a grieving cook and would be one of the more favourable winners of this category in recent years.
IGNORED? – Rosamund Pike (SALTBURN) – Though Saltburn was very diverse to critics and audiences, the British actress can feel disappointed to miss out after bagging key nominations at the Globes and BAFTAs.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Sterling K. Brown, AMERICAN FICTION
Robert De Niro, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Robert Downey Jr., OPPENHEIMER
Ryan Gosling, BARBIE
Mark Ruffalo, POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – Robert Downey Jr. – After all those years in an iron suit, the Hollywood heavyweight is finally getting his due at the Oscars after picking up crucial prizes at the Globes, BAFTAs and SAG.
SHOULD WIN? – Ryan Gosling – Though it’s great to see Downey Jr. finally land an Oscar, it would have just been as inspiring to see Gosling persevere for a humorous role akin to Kevin Kline’s victory here for A Fish Called Wanda.
IGNORED? – Dominic Sessa (THE HOLDOVERS) – The young star held his own against his more recognised co-stars, though his BAFTA nomination was very deserving.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
AMERICAN FICTION (Cord Jefferson)
BARBIE (Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach)
OPPENHEIMER (Christopher Nolan)
POOR THINGS (Tony McNamara)
THE ZONE OF INTEREST (Jonathan Glazer)
WILL WIN? – AMERICAN FICTION
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
IGNORED? – KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
ANATOMY OF A FALL (Justine Triet & Arthur Harari)
THE HOLDOVERS (David Hemingson)
MAESTRO (Bradley Cooper & Josh Singer)
MAY DECEMBER (Samy Burch)
PAST LIVES (Celine Song)
WILL WIN? – ANATOMY OF A FALL
SHOULD WIN? – ANATOMY OF A FALL
IGNORED? – AIR
BEST EDITING
ANATOMY OF A FALL
THE HOLDOVERS
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
OPPENHEIMER
POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
IGNORED? – MAESTRO
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
EL CONDE
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
MAESTRO
OPPENHEIMER
POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
IGNORED? – THE ZONE OF INTEREST
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
BARBIE
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
NAPOLEON
OPPENHEIMER
POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – POOR THINGS
SHOULD WIN? – POOR THINGS
IGNORED? – ASTEROID CITY
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
BARBIE
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
NAPOLEON
OPPENHEIMER
POOR THINGS
WILL WIN? – POOR THINGS
SHOULD WIN? – POOR THINGS
IGNORED? – THE COLOR PURPLE
BEST MAKE-UP AND HAIRSTYLING
GOLDA
MAESTRO
OPPENHEIMER
POOR THINGS
SOCIETY OF THE SNOW
WILL WIN? – MAESTRO
SHOULD WIN? – POOR THINGS
IGNORED? – KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
BEST SOUND
THE CREATOR
MAESTRO
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONE
OPPENHEIMER
THE ZONE OF INTEREST
WILL WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
IGNORED? – KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
THE CREATOR
GODZILLA: MINUS ONE
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONE
NAPOLEON
WILL WIN? – THE CREATOR
SHOULD WIN? – GODZILLA MINUS ONE
IGNORED? – SOCIETY OF THE SNOW
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
AMERICAN FICTION (Laura Karpman)
INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY (John Williams)
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON (Robbie Robertson)
OPPENHEIMER (Ludwig Göransson)
POOR THINGS (Jerskin Fendrix)
WILL WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
SHOULD WIN? – OPPENHEIMER
IGNORED? – SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
AMERICAN SYMPHONY, “It Never Went Away”
BARBIE, “I’m Just Ken”
BARBIE, “What Was I Made For?”
FLAMIN’ HOT, “The Fire Inside”
KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON, “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)”
WILL WIN? – BARBIE (“What Was I Made For?”)
SHOULD WIN? – BARBIE (“I’m Just Ken”)
IGNORED? – BARBIE (“Dance the Night”)
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
THE BOY AND THE HERON
ELEMENTAL
NIMONA
ROBOT DREAMS
SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE
WILL WIN? – THE BOY AND THE HERON – In what looks to be a close race against Spider-Man, the Japanese animation looks to have the edge after winning this category at the Globes and BAFTA. It would also be fitting to see the great Hayao Miyazaki prevail here again after his success with Spirited Away in 2003.
SHOULD WIN? – SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE – Having garnered similar acclaim to its predecessor, the Marvel sequel could yet sneak it after a strong performance at the Annie Awards and other guilds.
IGNORED? – TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM – Those wacky Ninja Turtles enjoyed a solid return to the big-screen in a film that surprisingly performed well with critics and audiences.
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
IO, CAPITANO (ITALY)
PERFECT DAYS (JAPAN)
SOCIETY OF THE SNOW (SPAIN)
THE TEACHERS’ LOUNGE (GERMANY)
THE ZONE OF INTEREST (UNITED KINGDOM)
WILL WIN? – THE ZONE OF INTEREST – The Nazi-based drama received strong acclaim throughout the awards season and looks set to bring the UK its first ever win in this category. Those Best Picture and Director nods also came in very handy!
SHOULD WIN? – SOCIETY OF THE SNOW – Despite an impressive showing on Netflix, the riveting dramatisation of the Andes disaster struggled to muster more nominations elsewhere.
IGNORED? – FALLEN LEAVES (FINLAND) – The Finnish romantic dramedy was one of the more likeable films on the longlist yet failed to make the final cut.
BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM
BOBI WINE: THE PEOPLE’S PRESIDENT
THE ETERNAL MEMORY
FOUR DAUGHTERS
TO KILL A TIGER
20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL
WILL WIN? – 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL
SHOULD WIN? – 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL
IGNORED? – STILL: A MICHAEL J. FOX STORY
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