The 98th Academy Awards nominations feature both fresh faces and returning favorites, as well as breaking records — for example, “Sinners” earned 16 nominations, surpassing the 14 received by “Titanic,” “All About Eve” and “La La Land.” Using data from past award shows, as well as our own insight, we’ll be your ‘secret agent’ and give our best shot at predicting the Oscar wins, one category after another.
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Timothée Chalamet | “Marty Supreme”
Leonardo DiCaprio | “One Battle after Another”
Ethan Hawke | “Blue Moon”
Michael B. Jordan | “Sinners”
Wagner Moura | “The Secret Agent”
Starting with a bang, the lead actor category features both greats and rising stars. Though Hawke and Moura delivered great performances, Jordan, Chalamet and DiCaprio are the main contenders.
DiCaprio presents one of his most compelling performances in “One Battle After Another,” making you truly root for his journey to find his missing daughter. And, for Jordan, if playing one character is not difficult enough, he plays both twin brothers, Smoke and Stack, in “Sinners,” exemplifying his range through subtle nuances in each character.
However, the most impressive performance was by Chalamet. After an elaborate marketing campaign, Chalamet had the most anticipated and compelling performance as smooth-talking ping pong prodigy Marty Mauser, where he blurred the line between acting and reality during the “Marty Supreme” press tour.
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Jessie Buckley | “Hamnet”
Rose Byrne | “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You”
Kate Hudson | “Song Sung Blue”
Renate Reinsve | “Sentimental Value”
Emma Stone | “Bugonia”
First-time nominees flood the lead actress category, with Buckley, Byrne and Reinsve receiving their firsts. At 37, Stone has become the fastest actress to reach seven nominations, surpassing previous record holder Meryl Streep, who reached the milestone at 38.
Hudson is the obvious last choice for this category (Chase Infiniti snubbed), but the other four actresses all have a chance to take home the Oscar. Ultimately, Buckley will likely do so with her raw, passionate portrayal of Agnes Shakespeare, illustrating true emotion and grief through her performance.
Actor in a Supporting Role
Benicio Del Toro | One Battle after Another
Jacob Elordi | Frankenstein
Delroy Lindo | Sinners
Sean Penn | One Battle after Another
Stellan Skarsgård | Sentimental Value
Frankenstein’s creature, a former director, a harmonica player, a sensei and Colonel Lockjaw — the extremely tight race for best supporting actor this year is comprised of very diverse roles. While Lindo’s portrayal of Delta Slim was beautifully executed, it was definitely a nice surprise to see him on this list, as Paul Mescal’s work in “Hamnet” was previously nominated for the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards but snubbed by the Academy Awards. Standouts from this list are first-time nominee Elordi and seasoned actor Skarsgård, who won the Critics’ Choice Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor this year, respectively. Coming from a frightening background of debuting in the “Kissing Booth” trilogy, Elordi proved himself in a transformative portrayal of The Creature, arguably saving the movie. Skarsgård delivered an amazing performance with his vulnerability as Gustav in “Sentimental Value.”
However, after winning the BAFTA and SAG award for best supporting actor, both of which typically align with the Oscar winner, Penn will likely take home the Academy Award in this stacked category.
Actress in a Supporting Role
Elle Fanning | Sentimental Value
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas | Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan | Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku | Sinners
Teyana Taylor | One Battle after Another
The nominees for best supporting actress evoked an assortment of emotions: Madigan made us jump out of our seats, Fanning and Ibsdotter Lilleaas elicited quiet devastation and Mosaku was the intimate, soulful core of “Sinners.” But Taylor’s debut performance as Perfidia Beverly Hills was just beyond electric.
Portraying a former revolutionary anti-hero, Taylor’s character was extremely well-written, transcending typical female roles. Perfidia Beverly Hills is unapologetic and strong-willed, and Taylor did an amazing job illustrating these traits to the audience, which won her a Golden Globe. Though the BAFTAs and Critics’ Choice Awards had different choices for this category (Mosaku and Madigan, respectively) and the Oscar is up for grabs for almost anyone in this category, Taylor will likely receive the award and is my personal favorite.
Best Directing
Hamnet | Chloé Zhao
Marty Supreme | Josh Safdie
One Battle after Another | Paul Thomas Anderson
Sentimental Value | Joachim Trier
Sinners | Ryan Coogler
Everyone in the best directing category is very much deserving of the Oscar, and it was exciting to see all their very distinctive styles at work this year. Safdie’s stress-inducing style from his previous directorial projects, “Uncut Gems” and “Good Time,” appears once again in “Marty Supreme.” Trier’s deep and sentimental screenplay in “Sentimental Value” is reminiscent of his movie, “The Worst Person in the World.” Coogler never fails to exemplify excellence with his muse, Michael B. Jordan, handling African American stories with immense care. With her moving, intimate character studies, Zhao returns in the best director category, making history as the second woman ever to be nominated twice as best director, joining Kathryn Bigelow.
However, after 14 Academy Award nominations and several masterpieces, including “There Will Be Blood,” “Boogie Nights” and “Phantom Thread,” Anderson will take home the Oscar. Anderson is known for his bold visual style and long takes, all of which were very apparent in his most recent film. So far, “One Battle After Another” has become the most decorated of the nominated films this season, and it will likely keep up the momentum and earn Anderson his first Academy Award.
Best Picture
“Bugonia”
“F1”
“Frankenstein”
“Hamnet”
“Marty Supreme”
“One Battle after Another”
“The Secret Agent”
“Sentimental Value”
“Sinners”
“Train Dreams”
The Best Picture category is always the most anticipated, and this year’s nominees are diverse, encompassing a variety of genres. Two international films have been nominated, exemplifying the increasing presence of international films in the main categories.
“F1” is the weakest link of the bunch, having the least amount of substance in its plot, followed by “Frankenstein,” which was only saved by its stunning costuming. “Bugonia” was a personal favorite due to its blend of social commentary, sci-fi, wit and the unique directorial style of Yorgos Lanthimos, though it will likely not take home any wins, as it was among the less popular nominees among movie fans. Close seconds are “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another,” which are front-runners. “One Battle After Another” will likely take home the Oscar after winning a BAFTA, Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Award for the same category due to its intense performances and cinematography, making the three-hour rollercoaster of a movie fly by.
These are our personal takes on the 98th annual Academy Awards. To find out how accurate we were, tune in live on ABC or stream on Hulu on March 15 at 4 p.m. to find out how accurate we were!
