Mass debates, heartfelt speeches and endless award shows — Scenes run down our predictions for the 2026 Oscars
We have finally made it, boys and girls. After months of award ceremonies, campaigning and a year of incredible movies, the 2026 Oscars are finally here.
What does that mean? All the best films from 2025 will be against each other to see which film was the best. Why do we feel the need to pit them against each other? No idea, but we do it anyway.
For some, it will be the pinnacle of their career. They will be celebrated for years and years of hard work. For others, it will be bitter disappointment. For me, it is a few hours trying to deal with Jonathan Ross babbling his way through the intervals and waking up the next day with no sleep whatsoever. Suffice to say, I can’t wait.
For the first time, I have seen the majority of the films nominated for an Oscar. Go me. A few have slipped through the cracks. Blame England and distribution, not me. But I have tried my best to see them all. So why not rank them?
I should specify I am not an award season guru. I have some idea, but I could be completely wrong. Don’t quote me on any of this.
I won’t be including short films, both live action and animated and I also won’t be doing the documentaries. I have nothing against them, I just haven’t seen enough to comment. Although I am rooting for Jane Austen’s Period Drama for Live Action Short, that was good fun.
Let’s get into it.
Actor in a leading role
Who I want to win: Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)
Who will win: Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme)
Reasoning: I am struggling with the narrative that Timothée Chalamet is owed an Oscar. He has been excellent in recent years. But he’s hardly been robbed. The people who have gone on to beat him have also been worthy winners. Luckily for his own sanity, I do think he will win it this year. But I would love for Michael B. Jordan to beat him to it. I am biased. He’s one of my favourite actors, so it would be very satisfying to watch him get the award. He deserved it as well; he is great in Sinners. But if we are talking solely based on the merit of their performance, it has to be Ethan Hawke in Blue Moon. He is obnoxiously good in that role.
Actor in a supporting role
Who I want to win: Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)
Who will win: Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)
Reasoning: I don’t like it either. I would rather give it to anyone else. Jacob Elordi, just know I would love to give this to you. I think he was breathtaking in Frankenstein. I don’t want to give a man who already has two Oscars a third when he clearly couldn’t care less. But we can’t kid ourselves. Sean Penn was magnificent as Lockjaw in One Battle After Another. It’s regrettably my favourite performance of the year. Well, at least it was.
Actress in a leading role
Who I want to win: Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You)
Who will win: Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)
Reasoning: I think Jessie Buckley is fantastic in Hamnet. I really do. By no means is her win going to be undeserved. But I can’t fathom the fact that Rose Byrne isn’t even getting a look-in. Her performance in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You is undoubtedly one of the best performances I have ever had the pleasure of watching. I don’t mean just this year either. She is remarkable. Your efforts are not lost on me, Rose Byrne. I will always remember this performance.
Actress in a supporting role
Who I want to win: Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value)
Who will win: Amy Madigan (Weapons)
Reasoning: I may as well stick my hand in a bowl full of names and pick out a winner. I’d probably have a better chance of getting it right than guessing. This is the most fun award of the night, by far. I originally thought Teyana Taylor had it nailed down, but now I’m not so sure. Realistically, I think Wumni Mosaku will win. Which I will be incredibly happy with. Her and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas are my two favourites from this category. But I think they are going to go rogue. I think Amy Madigan is going to avenge all the horror performance snubs over the years and collect her award with her hands frailing behind her back.
Animated feature film
Who I want to win: Zootopia 2? I guess.
Who will win: Kpop Demon Hunters
Reasoning: I haven’t seen Arco or Little Amélie, who, based on the trailers alone, definitely would be worthy winners. I don’t think it matters. Kpop Demon Hunters is the clear winner here. Which is fun. I love me a bit of Disney and Pixar, but it’s always fun when they don’t just win by default. Not that Sony is a massive underdog or anything, mind you.
Casting
Who I want to win: Marty Supreme
Who will win: Sinners
Reasoning: The Safdies’ ability to cast non-actors in their films and have them act toe to toe with the seasoned professionals is massively impressive. It’s just a shame that the majority of those said people are intolerable humans, including the Safdies themselves. I do think Sinners will win, but I would equally love The Secret Agent to win as well. Both would be worthy winners.
Cinematography
Who I want to win: Train Dreams
Who will win: One Battle After Another
Reasoning: For Train Dreams to succeed in the way it did, the cinematography had to be immaculate. Which it is. It is beautiful. It would be a fun win, but there’s a bump in the road. In fact, there are many bumps in the road. One Battle After Another stole this award with the car chase scene. No complaints from me.
Costume design
Who I want to win: Frankenstein
Who will win: Frankenstein
Reasoning: I’ll be honest with you, I don’t really care either way. All the costumes are great for all of these films, but they love period films, so it seems like Frankenstein has this in the bag. As a Frankenstein defender, I’m happy with that.
Directing
Who I want to win: Ryan Coogler (Sinners)
Who will win: Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)
Reasoning: You should be sensing a theme. I love Sinners. I am pulling for it in most awards it’s in. The other theme is that One Battle After Another will end up sweeping. Directing will be no different. Which, once again, I am fine with. Paul Thomas Anderson has paid his dues and would be a worthy winner.
Film editing
Who I want to win: One Battler After Another
Who will win: F1
Reasoning: It would be boring if all my predictions were safe, right? I have a sneaking suspicion that the academy is going to pull a Jamie Lee Curtis somewhere with F1, and I think they could do so with editing. It wouldn’t be too egregious; it does have good editing, but One Battle After Another should win this.
International feature film
Who I want to win: Sentimental Value
Who will win: Sentimental Value
Reasoning: I am yet to see either It Was Just an Accident or The Voice of Hind Rajab, but I would be massively surprised if either impressed me more than Sentimental Value. My eyes still feel a little dry from the tears I shed at the last 20 minutes of that movie.
Makeup and hairstyling
Who I want to win: Frankenstein
Who will win: Frankenstein
Reasoning: To me, it comes down to whether I think Jacob Elordi’s the monster looks better, or vampire Jack O’Connell does. Mainly because I haven’t seen The Ugly Step Sister or Kokuho yet, and I refuse to see The Smashing Machine win anything. I think I have to edge it to Elordi; they do make him almost unrecognisable, and I think the Academy will go with Frankenstein without question.
Music (Original score)
Who I want to win: Sinners
Who will win: Sinners
Reasoning: The Academy loves Ludwig Göransson. I love Ludwig Göransson. We should all love Ludwig Göransson. The more awards for Ludwig Göransson, the better.
Music (Original song)
Who I want to win: I Lied to You (Sinners)
Who will win: Golden (Kpop Demon Hunters)
Reasoning: Golden? Really? I’m fine with Kpop Demon Hunters winning, but there are better songs in that film than Golden. Another song better than Golden? I Lied to You, from Sinners. It feels almost gross that Miles Caton won’t win anything for how impressive he was in Sinners.
Best Picture
Who I want to win: Sinners
Who will win: One Battle After Another
Reasoning: Sinners winning the Actors Award was fun, but One Battle After Another has won practically every other precursor, so it seems like a lock. I’m not as big a One Battler After Another fan as most, but if it does end up sweeping, I won’t be mad. I will still be waiting with bated breath for a sneak Sinners win.
Production design
Who I want to win: Frankenstein
Who will win: Frankenstein
Reasoning: I can’t see Frankenstein losing any of these awards. Which means it seems like it’s guaranteed three Oscars, which is crazy. I liked it, but three Oscar-worthy? I guess?
Sound
Who I want to win: Sirät
Who will win: F1
Reasoning: It seems like no one understands the word ‘robbed’. If you’re nominated for an award, you can’t be robbed. If you’re not nominated but clearly deserve to be, that is being robbed. The only outlier to that rule is Sirät. The sound in that film is remarkable. It will be a farce if it somehow doesn’t win. F1 is going to win, isn’t it? Fuck. F1 is going to be a two-time Oscar winner. That would be the perfect example of a film being robbed.
Visual effects
Who I want to win: Avatar: Fire and Ash
Who will win: Avatar: Fire and Ash
Reasoning: I’ll save my fingers. We all know this is Avatar: Fire and Ash’s award.
Writing (Adapted screenplay)
Who I want to win: Bugonia
Who will win: One Battle After Another
Reasoning: II’m not mad at the fact that Bugonia won’t end up winning anything. Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone have both had their fair share of success in recent years. But it would be nice to see Bugonia win something, I thought it was fantastic. One Battle After Another will 100% win it, but I’d love Bugonia to.
Writing (Original screenplay)
Who I want to win: Sinners
Who will win: Sinners
Reasoning: This seems almost a guarantee at this point. Sentimental Value could maybe sneak in, but I feel as though Sinners doesn’t have any true competition.
Who I want to win:
Sinners: Six
Frankenstein: Three
One Battle After Another: Two
Sentimental Value: Two
Bugonia: One
Sirät: One
Avatar: Fire and Ash: One
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You: One
Train Dreams: One
Marty Supreme: One
Zootopia 2: One
Who I think the Academy will pick:
One Battle After Another: Five
Sinners: Three
Frankenstein: Three
Kpop Demon Hunters: Two
F1: Two
Hamnet: One
Marty Supreme: One
Weapons: One
Sentimental Value: One
Avatar: Fire and Ash: One
And breathe. There we have it. These are my picks and what I think the Academy will pick come Sunday. Let’s see how I do. Frankenstein, being the second most awarded, seems wrong, but hey ho.
If you like a bet, don’t listen to my predictions. I could be so wrong. If you do listen to my predictions and win some money, however, I expect my money in the post.
