The Oscar Narrative: Pre-Critics Predictions

Starting Thursday, it begins an almost whirlwind couple of weeks, with the Indie Spirits, and then the mountain of critics awards coming our way. Here are my current predictions:

Best Picture
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Bombshell
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Parasite

Best Director
Noah Baumbach "Marriage Story"
Bong Joon Ho "Parasite"
Sam Mendes "1917"
Martin Scorsese "The Irishman"
Quentin Tarantino "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"

Best Actor
Robert DeNiro "The Irishaman"
Leonardo DiCaprio "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"
Adam Driver "Marriage Story"
Eddie Murphy "Dolemite is My Name"
Joaquin Phoenix "Joker"

Best Actress
Awkwafina "The Farewell"
Scarlett Johansson "Marriage Story"
Saoirse Ronan "Little Women"
Charlize Theron "Bombshell"
Renee Zellweger "Judy"

Best Supporting Actor
Sterling K. Brown "Waves"
Willem Dafoe "The Lighthouse"
Tom Hanks "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood"
Al Pacino "The Irishman"
Brad Pitt "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"

Best Supporting Actress
Laura Dern "Marriage Story"
Jennifer Lopez "Hustlers"
Florence Pugh "Little Women"
Da'Vine Joy Randolph "Dolemite is My Name"
Margot Robbie "Bombshell"

Best Animated Feature
Frozen II
I Lost My Body
Missing Link
Toy Story 4
Weathering With You

Best Adapted Screenplay
Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood"
Steve Zaillian "The Irishman"
Taika Wahiti "Jojo Rabbit"
Todd Phillips and Scott Silver "Joker"
Greta Gerwig "Little Women"

Best Original Screenplay
Charles Randolph "Bombshell"
Lulu Wang "The Farewell"
Noah Baumbach "Marriage Story"
Quentin Tarantino "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"
Han Jin Won and Bong Joon Ho "Parasite"

Best Cinematography
Rodrigo Prieto "The Irishman"
Lawrence Sher "Joker"
Roger Deakins "1917"
Robert Richardson "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"
Kyung-pyo Hung "Parasite"

Best Costume Design
Dolemite is My Name
Downton Abbey
Little Women
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Rocketman

Best Film Editing
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
Marriage Story
1917
Once Upon a time in Hollywood

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Bombshell
Joker
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Rocketman
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Original Score
Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders "Ford v Ferrari"
Michael Giacchino "Jojo Rabbit"
Alexandre Desplat "Little Women"
Thomas Newman "1917"
John Williams "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker"

Best Production Design
The Irishman
Jojo Rabbit
Little Women
1917
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Best Sound Editing
Ad Astra
Ford v Ferrari
The Irishman
1917
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Sound Mixing
Ad Astra
Ford v Ferrari
1917
Rocketman
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Best Visual Effects
Aladdin
Avengers: Endgame
The Irishman
The Lion King
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker