Updated Academy Award Predictions For May!

Why not, right? Even as the industry is still figuring out what the rest of the year will be like, 2020 deserves to have some kind of accolades for its best titles, no? In some form or another, we’re going to have the Oscars. We now know that streaming titles will have more ability to contend than ever before, while the overall slate of films competing for love from the Academy could be the smallest in a long time. That’s going to present an interesting scenario, one we can’t quite fully comprehend yet. For the moment, it’s just a blind guessing game as to which movies will be able to come out in time for the awards, which will be worthy, and who the nominees will be. Today, I update my picks, if only to not seem horribly misinformed. Plus, it’s an excellent distraction…

Here’s my best guess at Academy Award predictions, for now, at least:

BEST PICTURE

1. West Side Story
2. Mank
3. The Trial of the Chicago 7
4. Da 5 Bloods
5. C’mon C’mon
6. News of the World
7. Nomadland
8. Stillwater
9. Ammonite
10. Tenet

Next in Line: 11. The Last Duel 12. The French Dispatch 13. 14. I’m Thinking of Ending Things 15. Minari 16. Promising Young Woman 17. The Eyes of Tammy Faye 18. Annette 19. On the Rocks 20. Dune 21. Next Goal Wins 22. Hillbilly Elegy 23. Those Who Wish Me Dead 24. Never Rarely Sometimes Always 25. Respect 26. The Way Back 27. Soul 28. The Invisible Man 29. Wonder Woman 1984 30. The King of Staten Island

BEST DIRECTOR

1. David Fincher – Mank
2. Spike Lee – Da 5 Bloods
3. Steven Spielberg – West Side Story
4. Mike Mills – C’mon C’mon
5. Chloe Zhao – Nomadland

Next in Line: 6. Paul Greengrass – News of the World 7. Aaron Sorkin – The Trial of the Chicago 7 8. Ridley Scott – The Last Duel 9. Christopher Nolan – Tenet 10. Tom McCarthy – Stillwater

BEST ACTOR

1. Tom Hanks – News of the World
2. Matt Damon – Stillwater (or The Last Duel)
3. Gary Oldman – Mank
4. Joaquin Phoenix – C’mon C’mon
5. Ben Affleck – The Way Back

Next in Line: 6. Bill Murray – On the Rocks 7. Adam Driver – Annette (or The Last Duel) 8. Andrew Garfield – The Eyes of Tammy Faye 9. Michael Fassbender – Next Goal Wins 10. John David Washington – Tenet

BEST ACTRESS

1. Carey Mulligan – Promising Young Woman
2. Jessica Chastain – The Eyes of Tammy Faye
3. Kate Winslet – Ammonite
4. Frances McDormand – Nomadland
5. Sidney Flanigan – Never Rarely Sometimes Always

Next in Line: 6. Amy Adams – Hillbilly Elegy 7. Rachel Zegler – West Side Story 8. Marion Cottilard – Annette 9. Jennifer Hudson – Respect 10. Angelina Jolie – Those Who Wish Me Dead

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1. Tom Burke – Mank
2. Jesse Plemons – I’m Thinking of Ending Things
3. Sacha Baron Cohen – The Trial of the Chicago 7
4. Chadwick Boseman – Da 5 Bloods
5. Eddie Redmayne – The Trial of the Chicago 7

Next in Line: 6. David Strathairn – Nomadland 7. Joseph Gordon-Levitt – The Trial of the Chicago 7 8. Paul Walter Hauser – Da 5 Bloods 9. Bill Murray – The French Dispatch 10. Ben Affleck – The Last Duel

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Saoirse Ronan – Ammonite
2. Rashida Jones – On the Rocks
3. Abigail Breslin – Stillwater
4. Jodie Comer – The Last Duel
5. Amanda Seyfried – Mank

Next in Line: 6. Glenn Close – Hillbilly Elegy 7. Gabby Hoffman – C’mon C’mon 8. Ariana DeBose – West Side Story 9. Lily Collins – Mank 10. Talia Ryder – Never Rarely Sometimes Always

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1. The Trial of the Chicago 7
2. C’mon C’mon
3. Mank
4. Da 5 Bloods
5. On the Rocks

Next in Line: 6. The French Dispatch 7. Tenet 8. The Eyes of Tammy Faye 9. Never Rarely Sometimes Always 10. The King of Staten Island

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1. Nomadland
2. West Side Story
3. I’m Thinking of Ending Things
4. The Last Duel
5. News of the World

Next in Line: 6. Those Who Wish Me Dead 7. Next Goal Wins 8. Hillbilly Elegy 9. Dune 10. First Cow

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

1. Soul
2. Onward
3. Trolls World Tour
4. The Willoughbys
5. The Croods 2

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

1. Tenet
2. West Side Story
3. Dune
4. The French Dispatch
5. The Last Duel

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1. Mank
2. Tenet
3. West Side Story
4. Dune
5. The Last Duel

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

1. Mank
2. The French Dispatch
3. The Last Duel
4. Emma.
5. Ammonite

BEST FILM EDITING

1. Tenet
2. Mank
3. News of the World
4. Dune
5. Da 5 Bloods

BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING

1. The French Dispatch
2. Mank
3. Dune
4. The Witches
5. Mulan

BEST SOUND MIXING

1. Tenet
2. West Side Story
3. Dune
4. No Time to Die
5. Soul

BEST SOUND EDITING

1. Tenet
2. West Side Story
3. Dune
4. No Time to Die
5. Soul

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

1. Tenet
2. Dune
3. Wonder Woman 1984
4. Godzilla vs Kong
5. Black Widow

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

1. Mank
2. Dune
3. Soul
4. The French Dispatch
5. Da 5 Bloods

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

1. No Time to Die
2. Soul
3. Onward
4. Annette
5. Miss Americana

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

1. Crip Camp
2. Dick Johnson is Dead
3. Miss Americana
4. Pray Away
5. Spaceship Earth

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE

1. Ema
2. Young Ahmed
3. The Wild Goose Lake
4. Asia
5. Wake Up on Mars

Stay tuned for an update next month!