It is time to severely take into account who will take residence Oscar “Academy Awards” gold this Sunday, March 27th at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, beginning at eight p.m. EST. Presenters for this yr’s ceremony embrace Halle Bailey, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson, Samuel L. Jackson, Shawn Mendes, Tyler Perry, and Tracee Ellis Ross. That is along with Ruth E. Carter, Kevin Costner, Anthony Hopkins, Lily James, Daniel Kaluuya, Zoe Kravitz, Mina Kunis, Woman Gaga, John Leguizamo, Simu Liu, Rami Malek, Lupita Nyong’o, Rosie Perez, Chris Rock, Naomi Scott, Wesley Snipes, Uma Thurman, John Travolta, and Yuh-Jung Youn.
Sure, all this expertise above is overwhelming, however, what you really want to know is how one can beat your pals at choosing the winners this Sunday. This is our predictions for the present’s greatest winners—in addition to a plan for a contingency if issues don’t go in line with the plan for you.
BEST PICTURE: Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” will probably be the primary Netflix title to lasso the Finest Image honor.
The primary main prize of this awards season was given on the 78th Venice Worldwide Pageant final September when Campion acquired the Silver Lion award for guiding. From there, her 1920s Western, drenched with poisonous masculinity, grief, and love, settled for second runner-up for the Folks’ Selection Award Toronto Worldwide Movie Pageant, after being bested by Kenneth Branagh’s “Belfast.” Nonetheless, on the subject of this yr’s Oscars, Campion’s movie scored essentially the most nominations—12—whereas “Belfast” has acquired seven probabilities for a trophy. In the meantime, Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi drama “Dune” scooped up 10 nods, together with Finest Image. Nevertheless, it primarily earned most of its nominations within the below-the-line classes.
Campion can also be now the primary feminine ever nominated twice as Finest Director, her first being for 1993’s “The Piano.” She claimed the Palme d’Or at Venice that yr and in addition earned an Oscar for Finest Authentic Screenplay. At this level, “The Power of the Dog” is the more than likely movie this yr to assert each Finest Image and Finest Director. Earlier this yr, “The Energy of the Canine” managed to win Golden Globes for Finest Movement-Image—Drama, Finest Director, and Finest Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee. Campion can also be the primary feminine director to earn greater than ten Academy Awards nominations for a movie.
Final yr, it was clear that Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” was the one to beat ever because it claimed the Golden Lion at Venice. One thing about these modest wanderers of their RVs allowed film lovers to benefit from the freedom of the street and the Southwest States and they are fantastic doors panoramas. Is “The Power of the Dog” an identical grabber? It appears so. Plus, it can probably be simply the third time {that a} female-directed movie gained Finest Image, beginning with Kathryn Bigelow who took each prize for her 2008 battle movie “The Hurt Locker.” She and Zhao will probably welcome Campion to their membership.
POSSIBLE SPOILER? Sian Heder’s Finest Image nominee “CODA,” which took the ensemble award on the Display Actors Guild—an honor equal to Finest Image.
BEST DIRECTOR: I’ll stick by Campion.
POSSIBLE SPOILER: Helmer Ryusuke Hamaguchi for “Drive My Car,” which additionally earned three different Oscar nominations—specifically, Finest Image, Finest Worldwide Characteristic Movie, and Finest Tailored Screenplay. Additionally, it is the primary Japanese-language movie to compete for Finest Image.
BEST ACTRESS: Jessica Chastain for her efficiency in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” taking part in the infamous televangelist who preached to the choir and took their cash, singing to her followers with layers upon layers of make-up and heavy fake eyelashes. Chastain is overdue for a win, having acquired two earlier Academy Awards nominations: Finest Supporting Actress for 2011’s “The Help” and Finest Actress for 2012’s “Zero Dark Thirty.”
POSSIBLE SPOILER: Olivia Colman—AKA a human awards magnet who gained this prize for her ditzy rabbit-loving Queen Anne in 2018’s “The Favorite.” On this yr’s “The Lost Daughter,” she performs a reluctant mom who plunges right into a whirlpool of maternal battle. Colman additionally was nominated final yr because the caretaker daughter of Anthony Hopkins who suffers from dementia in 2020’s“The Father.”
BEST ACTOR: Will Smith headlines within the biopic “King Richard” because the decided father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams. Like Chastain, Smith has beforehand competed at the Oscars. He was nominated for bringing the boxing legend Muhammad Ali to life within the 2001 movie “Ali” and he portrayed a real-life homeless salesman who protects his younger son in 2006’s “The Pursuit of Happyness.” He’s additionally up for Finest Image as a producer of his present contender.
POSSIBLE SPOILER: Benedict Cumberbatch, for his work as macho rancher Phil Burbank in “The Power of the Dog.” The British performer has beforehand been nominated for Finest Actor in 2014’s “The Imitation Game.”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Ariana DeBose, who broke out on the sixth season of TV competitor’s collection in “So You Think You Can Dance” in 2009, whereas making it into the highest 20 rivals. She was up for a Finest Featured Actress Tony in 2018 for her function as Disco Donna within the jukebox musical Summertime: The Donna Summertime Musical. She can also be a vital darling for her function as Anita within the big-screen remake of “West Aspect Story.” The part of the Manhattan-loving Puerto Rican transplant has earned her a lot of acclaim and several other accolades, together with a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, and a Display Actors Guild Award. The latter made her the primary Afro-Latina and brazenly queer girl of coloration to win the award. DeBose is the closest factor to a lock to take the gold this yr.
POSSIBLE SPOILER: A 12-year-old Kirsten Dunst stole the present as a bratty youngster bloodsucker in 1994’s “Interview with the Vampire” reverse a less-than-engaging Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. Now in “The Power of the Dog,” her Rose is a teetotaler turned alcoholic who turns into sadder and sadder when she, her homosexual son Peter, and her new husband transfer into his brother’s home, who treats her relatively badly. By now, Dunst ought to have acquired extra awards gold in her profession. Maybe she may pull an upset.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Troy Kotsur is a stand-out in “CODA,” as a father of a clan that has three deaf members who make a residing catching fish.
POSSIBLE SPOILER: Kodi Smit-McPhee’s function as Peter in “The Power of the Dog.”
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: “The Power of the Dog” is prone to enable Campion to pair a trophy for Tailored Screenplay with the one she beforehand acquired for Finest Authentic Screenplay for “The Piano.”
POSSIBLE SPOILER: Maggie Gyllenhaal was beforehand nominated as a Supporting Actress for her function as a single mom and journalist in 2009’s “Crazy Heart.” As an author/director, she may presumably take this prize for her adaptation of Elena Ferrante’s “The Lost Daughter.”
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Paul Thomas Anderson may earn his first-ever Oscar with the coming-of-age story “Licorice Pizza” for his unique script, though he isn’t prone to win Finest Image or Finest Director, his different two nominations.
POSSIBLE SPOILER: “Belfast” s script would possibly simply be that movie’s solely Oscar win.