The Supporting Actor category is looking likely to be a two or three horse race between three acclaimed performances this year. Stellan Skarsgard and Sean Penn are almost a certainty when it comes to having their names announced on nomination morning, with the veteran actors delivering career-high performances, not to mention Skarsgard’s overdue narrative. The third potential winner in this category, if not campaigned in lead, is Paul Mescal for Chloe Zhao’s “Hamnet”. Before the campaign trail begins, it is hard to say where Focus Features will look to place Mescal, but I think he is likely to land a nomination regardless of it being in Lead or Supporting.
I cannot see a likely winner outside of these three, with a battlefield of nominees looking to snap up the final two or three slots. The overdue narrative could also land Adam Sandler his first ever Oscar nomination for his performance in Noah Baumbach’s “Jay Kelly”, while the overall strength of “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another” may see Delroy Lindo, Miles Caton or Benicio del Toro sneak in.
Full list of Supporting Actor predictions – September 2025:
Strong Contenders
- Stellan Skarsgard “Sentimental Value”
- Paul Mescal “Hamnet”
- Sean Penn “One Battle After Another”
- Jeremy Strong “Deliver Me from Nowhere”
- Adam Sandler “Jay Kelly”
Possible Contenders
- Delroy Lindo “Sinners”
- Miles Caton “Sinners”
- Jacob Elordi “Frankenstein”
- Akira Emoto “Rental Family”
- Benicio del Toro “One Battle After Another”
Outsiders
- Andrew Garfield “After the Hunt”
- Jonathan Bailey “Wicked: For Good”
- Sean Bean “Anemone”
- Stephen Graham “Deliver Me from Nowhere”
- Robert Pattinson “Die My Love”
Check out my Movie Reviews and other way-too-early Oscar Predictions via the links below.
Dan Loves Film 
Leave a comment