Academy Award Final Predictions

With less than a week until the 96th Annual Academy Awards, it is time to make my final predictions as to to who is going to be walking away with the coveted Oscar statuettes on Sunday.

There are several categories that are foregone conclusions based on the past couple months of award season. Absolute shoo-ins for an award it seems are: Robert Downey Jr. and Da’Vine Joy Randolph for their supporting performances in “Oppenheimer” and “The Holdovers” respectively, as the two have not missed a bit all season.

I can also predict with almost certainty that Christopher Nolan will finally get his hands on that elusive first Oscar, as he will inevitably walk away with Director and Best Picture as one of the movie’s producers. As well as Picture, Director and Supporting Actor, Nolan’s epic biopic is also a dead cert in the following categories: Cinematography, Sound, Original Score and Editing, guaranteeing at least 7 wins on the night. There is the potential for more if Cillian Murphy can keep Paul Giamatti at bay in the Lead Actor race.

The more competitive races are in the two screenplay categories, where “Anatomy of a Fall” and “American Fiction” appear to be leading their respective categories, but they hardly have a healthy lead over their competition, so I would not be surprised if “The Holdovers” or “Barbie” came away with an award here. Who knows, if “Oppenheimer” is really that strong it could snap up a potential ninth win of the night here.

Full list of Academy Award Predictions:

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

Best Director

• Justine Triet (Anatomy of a Fall)
• Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon)
• Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer)
• Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things)
• Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest)

Best Actor

• Bradley Cooper (Maestro)
• Colman Domingo (Rustin)
• Paul Giamatti (The Holdovers)
• Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer)
• Jeffrey Wright (American Fiction)

Best Actress

• Annette Bening (Nyad)
• Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon)
• Sandra Huller (Anatomy of a Fall)
• Carey Mulligan (Maestro)
• Emma Stone (Poor Things)

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)

Best Supporting Actress

• Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer)
• Danielle Brooks (The Colour Purple)
• America Ferrera (Barbie)
• Jodie Foster (Nyad)
• Da’Vine Joy Randolph (The Holdovers)

Adapted Screenplay

• American Fiction
• Barbie
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things
• The Zone of Interest

Original Screenplay

• Anatomy of a Fall
• The Holdovers
• Maestro
• May December
• Past Lives

International Film

• Io Capitano
• Perfect Days
• Society of the Snow
• The Teachers’ Lounge
• The Zone of Interest

Animated Feature

• The Boy and the Heron
• Elemental
• Nimona
• Robot Dreams
• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Documentary Feature

• 20 Days in Mariupol
• Bobi Wine: The People’s President
• The Eternal Memory
• Four Daughters
• To Kill a Tiger

Cinematography

• El Conde
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Maestro
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Editing

• Anatomy of a Fall
• The Holdovers
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Costume Design

• Barbie
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Napoleon
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Make-Up & Hairstyling

• Golda
• Maestro
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things
• Society of the Snow

Production Design

• Barbie
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Napoleon
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Original Score

• American Fiction
• Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Original Song

• “It Never Went Away” (American Symphony)
• “I’m Just Ken” (Barbie)
• “What Was I Made For?” (Barbie)
• “The Fire Inside” (Flamin’ Hot)
• “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” (Killers of the Flower Moon)

Sound

• The Creator
• Maestro
• Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
• Oppenheimer
• The Zone of Interest

Visual Effects

• The Creator
• Godzilla Minus One
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
• Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
• Napoleon

Animated Short

• Letter to a Pig
• Ninety-Five Senses
• Our Uniform
• Pachyderme
• WAR IS OVER! Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko

Documentary Short

• The ABCs of Book Banning
• The Barber of Little Rock
• Island in Between
• The Last Repair Shop
• Nai Nai & Wai Po

Live Action Short

• The After
• Invincible
• Knight of Fortune
• Red White and Blue
• The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

The 96th Academy Awards take place on Sunday 10th March