My final picks for this year's Academy Awards.
The Oscars are just days away. Below you'll find winner predictions and personal picks for each category. Let's dive in!
I didn't offer picks for the following categories (didn't get around to all of the nominated projects within each): Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short, Best Live-Action Short, and Best Animated Short.
Best Picture
Predicted winner: Oppenheimer
My pick: Oppenheimer
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
The Holdovers
Best Director
Predicted winner: Christopher Nolan
My pick: Christopher Nolan
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
Predicted winner: Paul Giamatti
My pick: Paul Giamatti
Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction
Bradley Cooper, Maestro
Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Colman Domingo, Rustin
Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
Best Actress
Predicted winner: Lily Gladstone
My pick: Lily Gladstone (Emma Stone is a very close second)
Annette Bening, Nyad
Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan, Maestro
Emma Stone, Poor Things
Best Supporting Actor
Predicted winner: Robert Downey Jr.
My pick: Sterling K. Brown (RDJ is the clear-cut favorite, but Brown and Mark Ruffalo deserve serious consideration)
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
Predicted winner: Da’Vine Joy Randolph
My pick: Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Emily Blunt's work in Oppenheimer makes her a close second)
Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple
America Ferrera, Barbie
Jodie Foster, Nyad
Da'Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
Best Original Screenplay
Predicted winner: The Holdovers
My pick: The Holdovers
Justine Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall
Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer, Maestro
Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik, May December,
Celine Song, Past Lives
David Hemingson, The Holdovers
Best Adapted Screenplay
Predicted winner: Barbie
My pick: American Fiction
Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, Barbie
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Tony McNamara, Poor Things
Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest
Best Animated Feature
Predicted winner: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
My pick: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Elemental
Nimona
Robot Dreams
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
The Boy and the Heron
Best International Feature
Predicted winner: The Zone of Interest
My pick: The Zone of Interest
Io Capitano (Italy)
Perfect Days (Japan)
Society of the Snow (Spain)
The Teachers' Lounge (Germany)
The Zone of Interest (United Kingdom)
Best Original Score
Predicted winner: Oppenheimer
My pick: Poor Things
Laura Karpman, American Fiction
John Williams, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Robbie Robertson, Killers of the Flower Moon
Ludwig Göransson, Oppenheimer
Jerskin Fendrix, Poor Things
Best Original Song
Predicted winner: I'm Just Ken
My pick: Wahzhaze
"The Fire Inside" from Flamin' Hot, music and lyrics by Diane Warren
"I'm Just Ken" from Barbie, music and lyrics by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt
"It Never Went Away" from American Symphony, music and lyrics by Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson
"Wahzhaze" (A Song for My People) from Killers of the Flower Moon, music and lyrics by Scott George
"What Was I Made For?" from Barbie, music and lyrics by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell
Best Sound
Predicted winner: Oppenheimer
My pick: The Zone of Interest
The Creator
Maestro
Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
The Zone of Interest
Best Production Design
Predicted winner: Barbie
My pick: Poor Things
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best Cinematography
Predicted winner: Oppenheimer
My pick: Oppenheimer
El Conde
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Predicted winner: Maestro
My pick: Society of the Snow
Golda
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Society of the Snow
Best Costume Design
Predicted winner: Barbie
My pick: Poor Things
Jacqueline Durran, Barbie
Jacqueline West, Killers of the Flower Moon
Janty Yates and Dave Crossman, Napoleon
Ellen Mirojnick, Oppenheimer
Holly Waddington, Poor Things
Best Film Editing
Predicted winner: Oppenheimer
My pick: Killers of the Flower Moon
Anatomy of a Fall
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
The Holdovers
Best Visual Effects
Predicted winner: The Creator (I hope I'm wrong and Godzilla Minus One wins)
My pick: Godzilla Minus One
The Creator
Godzilla Minus One
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon
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Best Documentary Feature
My pick: N/A
Second Choice: N/A
Bobi Wine: The People's President
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
To Kill a Tiger
20 Days in Mariupol
Best Documentary Short
My pick: N/A
Second Choice: N/A
The ABCs of Book Banning
The Barber of Little Rock
Island in Between
The Last Repair Shop
Nai Nai & Wai Po
Best Live-Action Short
My pick: N/A
Second Choice: N/A
The After
Invincible
Knight of Fortune
Red, White, and Blue
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Best Animated Short
My pick: N/A
Second Choice: N/A
Letter to a Pig
Ninety-Five Senses
Our Uniform
Pachyderme
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