The Oscar Narrative: First 2018 Oscar Predictions - Best Actor

First 2018 Predictions
Matt Damon "Downsizing"
Daniel Day-Lewis "Phantom Thread"
Armie Hammer "Call Me By Your Name"
Hugh Jackman "The Greatest Showman"
Gary Oldman "Darkest Hour"

Other Contenders - Chadwick Boseman "Marshall", Tom Hanks "Untitled Steven Spielberg Project", Timothee Chalamet "Call Me By Your Name", Benedict Cumberbatch "The Current War", Joaquin Phoenix "You Were Never Really There", Javier Bardem "Mother!", Woody Harrelson "LBJ", Colin Farrell "The Killing of the Sacred Deer", Cillian Murphy "Dunkirk", Tom Hardy "Dunkirk", Jeremy Renner "Wind River", Denzel Washington "Inner City", Domnhall Gleeson "Goodbye Christopher Robin", Kumail Nanjiani "The Big Sick, Idris Elba "The Mountain Between", Robert Redford "Our Souls at Night", John Boyega "Detroit", Andrew Garfield "Breathe", Andrew Garfield "Under the Silver Lake", Christian Bale "Hostiles", Oakes Fegley "Wonderstruck", Liam Neeson "The Silent Man", Michael Fassbender "The Snowman", Ali Fazal "Victoria and Abdul", Miles Teller "Thank You For Your Service", Jake Gyllenhaal "Stronger", James McAvoy "Split", Hugh Jackman "Logan", Robert Pattinson "Good Time", Bryan Cranston "Last Flag Flying", Adam Sandler "The Meyerowitz Stories", Daniel Kaluuya "Get Out", James Franco "The Disaster Artist", Tracey Letts "The Lovers", Ryan Gosling "Blade Runner 2049", Jaeden Lieberher "The Book of Henry", Chris Pratt "Guardians of the Galaxy 2", Johnny Depp "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales", Ansel Elgort "Baby Driver", Tom Holland "Spider-Man: Homecoming", Channing Tatum "Logan Lucky"

Commentary - Another crowded year with so many possibilities. This early in the game it is best to stick with safe bets. We already know Call Me By Your Name is going to be a hit, and it might finally be the role that gets Armie Hammer an Oscar nod. The great Daniel Day-Lewis returns to the race, and it is always a bad idea to bet against him, especially when he teams up with Paul Thomas Anderson. Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum feels right up his alley. Matt Damon broke through again for The Martian, and teaming up with Alexander Payne feels like awards gold. Finally, Gary Oldman might finally have hit the role of a lifetime playing Winston Churchill. These five are out front, but you have Tom Hanks teaming up with Spielberg and Meryl Streep, Chadwick Boseman playing Thurgood Marshall, Benedict Cumberbatch as Thomas Edison, and previous nominees and winners Joaquin Phoenix, Woody Harrelson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hardy, Denzel Washington, Robert Redford, Andrew Garfield (in two roles), Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Michael Fassbender, Liam Neeson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Bryan Cranston, and Javier Barden. There is young talent like Sundance breakthrough Timothee Chalamet, Miles Teller, Oakes Fegley, Tom Holland, and Ansel Elgort. Finally, early contenders like Hugh Jackman and Daniel Kaluuya, and outside the box choices like James Franco, Tracye Letts, and yes, even Adam Sandler, could be in the mix.