Introduction
The best of the best films will be honored Sunday night at the 98th Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.
2025 proved to be a spectacular year for film. From record breaking original films, to awe inspiring visual spectacles, to a global KPop phenomenon, this year's slate is chock full of groundbreaking movies. While some readers may not be familiar with every film that was nominated, I will go through each of the major categories so you can confidently take part in and enjoy Hollywood's biggest night. So, without further ado, let's get to the picks!
**Winners are bolded
Best Picture
Bugonia
F1
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners**
Sentimental Value
The Secret Agent
Train Dreams
Not many films can carry momentum from the spring all the way through awards season. Sinners isn't most films. A surprising juggernaut that has garnered a record 16 Academy Award nominations, Ryan Coogler's period piece taking place in the Mississippi Delta at the turn of the 20th century is, for me, the clear winner. From the cast, to the music, to the setting, to the symbolism; Sinners checks every box and should be considered a modern day masterpiece.
If anything will usurp it, it is likely to be One Battle After Another. Paul Thomas Anderson's film about retired revolutionaries who's past comes back to haunt them is a politically charged thriller that is topical in the current geopolitical landscape. The Academy tends to lean towards movies that are topical or are about Hollywood. OBAA could definitely be in for a Best Picture win come Sunday night.
Best Actor
Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme**
Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Wagner Moura, The Secret Agent
What once looked like a race that Chalamet was going to run away with has turned into a heated contest with multiple winners across various award ceremonies. Jordan's dual role as Smoke and Stack is gaining momentum in this category after winning Best Actor at the Actor Awards (formally SAG Awards). But for me, this one goes to Chalamet for his transformative, bombastic, and slimy portrayal of Marty Mauser, a high level ping pong player living in 1950s Brooklyn trying to hustle his way to the top. He should be the heavy favorite heading into Sunday night's ceremony. But will a brazen Oscar campaign that has turned some people off to Chalamet be his undoing? We'll find out.
Best Actress
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
All signs point to Buckley running away with Best Actress. She is so far sweeping awards season after her performance in Hamnet that sees her, at first, as a social outcast, then a loving mother, only to be struck with grief after the passing of her child. Buckley is able to capture a complete range of emotions throughout what becomes a pretty brutal movie to watch, only for her to bring it home with a soft touch of acceptance in the end. Keep an eye on Rose Byrne here as well. If any one is pulling the upset, it will likely be her. In If I Had Legs I'd Kick You, Byrne plays a mother who's life is collapsing around her as she tries to aid her child stricken with a mysterious illness.
Supporting Actor
Benicio del Toro, One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein
Delroy Lindo, Sinners**
Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value
This category is stacked and a true toss up. Skarsgård bagged the Golden Globe in this category while Penn picked up wins at the Critics Choice and BAFTA Awards. I'm going with Lindo here for his portrayal of Delta Slim, a ragged blues musician just trying to make his way in an oppressive world before he gets sucked into an unexpected conflict with vampires. Lindo captures such a wide array of emotions, from defensive and abrasive when we are first introduced to him to soft and tender with Miles Caton's Sammie Moore as he prepares to perform. Its an excellent performance and definitely worthy of recognition.
Supporting Actress
Elle Fanning, Sentimental Value
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Sentimental Value**
Amy Madigan, Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners
Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another
This is another category without a clear favorite. Taylor, Mosaku, and Madigan have all scored wins to this point. My choice, however, is Lilleaas for her role as Agnes Borg in Sentimental Value. While the core conflict of the movie is between her sister Nora (Renate Reinsve) and their father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgard), Lilleaas is arguably the heart of the film. She is thrown into the middle of the conflict after Gustav returns to their lives following the death of their mother. She is being pulled in every direction; trying to play mediator between her sister, absent father, and her son and husband. Its a very emotional and tender performance from Lilleaas and she deserves her flowers.
Best Director
Chloé Zhao, Hamnet
Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Joachim Trier, Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler, Sinners**
This one feels like it will come down to either Coogler or Anderson. It goes without saying that both of their films are the leading contenders for Best Picture. I'm opting for Coogler because of the bold vision he takes with Sinners. He manages to tackle everything from racial tensions in the South to how immigrants are yearning for a home to call their own. It was a gamble to try and fit all that into what many are calling simply a vampire or horror movie. But Sinners is so much more than that. Coogler scores another win here.
Best Casting
Hamnet, Nina Gold
Marty Supreme, Jennifer Venditti
One Battle after Another, Cassandra Kulukundis**
The Secret Agent, Gabriel Domingues
Sinners, Francine Maisler
This is the first year for the Best Casting category and it will likely come down to OBAA and Sinners. The talent in both ensembles are outstanding in their roles. But the former crushes it with actors we haven't seen in an awards season movie in a while (Penn) as well as introducing us to newcomer Chase Infiniti, who has a very bright future ahead of her. Add in Dicaprio, Taylor, and Del Toro (not to mention the unheralded Regina King who for some reason was skipped over this awards season) and you have a wonderful cast of characters that truly make their world feel authentic and lived in.
Best Cinematography
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams**
A strong argument could be made for all of the nominees in this category. But Train Dreams takes home the award in what becomes a harrowing reflection of love and loss in the Pacific Northwest during westward expansion around the turn of the 20th century. The beautiful trees in the forest and passage of time make us feel as if we are living that frontier life. If you haven't seen this gem yet, make sure to check it out.
Best Score
Bugonia, Jerskin Fendrix
Frankenstein, Alexandre Desplat
Hamnet, Max Richter
One Battle after Another, Jonny Greenwood
Sinners, Ludwig Goransson**
Greenwood's efforts in One Battle After Another are surely worthy of recognition during this year's awards season. But the no-doubt winner here is Sinners. Goransson crafts a beautiful collection of music that progresses from Delta Blues to heavy chords by the end of the film that emanate power ballads. This one should be clear cut.
Original Song
"Dear Me" from Diane Warren: Relentless; music and lyric by Diane Warren
"Golden" from KPop Demon Hunters; music and lyric by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon and Teddy Park
"I Lied to You" from Sinners; music and lyric by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Goransson**
"Sweet Dreams of Joy" from Viva Verdi!; music and lyric by Nicholas Pike
"Train Dreams" from Train Dreams; music by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner; lyric by Nick Cave
KPop Demon Hunters took the world by storm last summer; to the point Netflix was pretty much obligated to give the visual spectacle a theatrical run. Any parent with a young child has no doubt been listening to "Golden" on repeat over the last few months. The slick jam has been cleaning house during this year's award season and looks like the heavy favorite to take home the Academy award.
However, this year's race gives Academy voters a rare opportunity to award not just a beautiful song, but also what was arguably the best scene of the decade with Miles Caton performing "I Lied To You" in Sinners. Its not just a song. Its a timeline and introspective of Black music and culture spanning hundreds of years. You could feel the theater levitating during the incredible song and sequence. That feeling is enough to earn my vote for Best Original Song.
Best Editing
F1
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners**
Another win for Sinners. The pacing in this film is excellent at helping to build tension towards the impending doom awaiting our heroes. Showing the end at the beginning can be a tired trope but works in this instance. Couple that with the riveting sequence in the juke joint during Caton's performance of "I Lied To You" blending together different eras of Black music and culture in a seamless tracking shot. This one is well earned.
Best Costume Design
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme**
Sinners
Frankenstein has been cleaning up in this category across the other award shows. I'm opting for Marty Supreme though. This will go hand in hand with Production Design, but the costumes coupled with the excellent sets makes the world feel so lived in in what is meant to be Post-War Brooklyn. The people feel very authentic in Supreme as opposed to extravagant or flamboyant.
Makeup & Hairstyling
Frankenstein, Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey**
Kokuho, Kyoko Toyokawa, Naomi Hibino and Tadashi Nishimatsu
Sinners, Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine and Shunika Terry
The Smashing Machine, Kazu Hiro, Glen Griffin and Bjoern Rehbein
The Ugly Stepsister, Thomas Foldberg and Anne Cathrine Sauerberg
A well-earned win here for the trio behind the Frankenstein makeup. Jacob Elordi's design as The Creature gives a fresher take on what could have been a stale re-tread of source material we have seen adapted countless times. And while Mia Goth already looks like she could've been plucked right out of the 19th century, the hairstyling and makeup team do a perfect job of reinforcing that notion.
Production Design
Frankenstein**
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
We know what were are getting from a Guillermo Del Toro movie at this point and that is weird, yet creative and dream-like sets. Frankenstein is no exception and a big reason why the movie was so anticipated when he was announced as the director. From the onset with the Danish Navy ship stuck in the ice while trying to make its way to the north pole to the Doctor's mansion and lab where the Creature is brought to life; the sets are by far the best part of this movie and help to bring Del Toro's fantastical vision of an old classic to life.
Best Sound
F1**
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sirāt
While Sinners is a popular pick in this category...I am leaning towards F1. The Brad Pitt racing movie was made to be seen on the biggest screen with the biggest sound system possible. Capturing the excitement and thrill of the global phenomenon that is F1 racing elevated this movie from a fun racing film to a spectacle that allows you to lose yourself in the sound of the engines.
Best Visual Effects
Avatar: Fire and Ash**
F1
Jurassic World Rebirth
The Lost Bus
Sinners
This one is pretty cut and dry. While not making as much at the box office as the previous two installments, Fire and Ash's visuals are as breathe taking as ever. The Na'vi have never looked so real and we are transported back to Pandora for another round of saving the native habitat. Top to bottom, its a gorgeous movie that at times is so immersive you'd swear you're right in the middle of the action. An easy win for James Cameron and his team here.
Adapted Screenplay
Bugonia, screenplay by Will Tracy
Frankenstein, written for the screen by Guillermo del Toro
Hamnet, screenplay by Chloé Zhao and Maggie O'Farrell
One Battle After Another, written by Paul Thomas Anderson**
Train Dreams, screenplay by Clint Bentley & Greg Kweda
Based on the 1990 novel Vineyard by Thomas Pynchon, Anderson takes the most fantastical aspects of the book and turns it into a modern day thinkpiece on generation after generation finding their own way in dealing with governmental authority. The comedic aspects of this script is what really puts it over the top.
Original Screenplay
Blue Moon, written by Robert Kaplow
It Was Just an Accident, written by Jafar Panahi; script collaborators: Nader Saïvar, Shadmehr Rastin, Mehdi Mahmoudian
Marty Supreme, written by Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie**
Sentimental Value, written by Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier
Sinners, written by Ryan Coogler
Chalamet's performance is so kinetic and off the cuff it feels almost impossible that all of his words and mannerisms would show up in a screenplay. But that's just how effective Safdie and Bronstein are in making these chaotic characters feel so real. Loosely based on Marty Reisman's 1974 autobiography, The Money Player, the events of the movie are so off the wall, its hard to know where you are being lead. However, that's half of the fun. Or in this case, stress.
Best Animated Feature
Arco
Elio
KPop Demon Hunters**
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Zootopia 2
This one is a two-horse race. However, Zootopia 2's record setting box office run isn't enough to outdo the global phenomenon that is KPop Demon Hunters, a film so popular Netflix had no choice but to give it a theatrical run. Its also one of the streaming giant's most successful projects ever. Rumi and her crew of musicians/demon hunters take home the top prize.
Best International Feature
The Secret Agent, Brazil
It Was Just an Accident, France
Sentimental Value, Norway**
Sirāt, Spain
The Voice of Hind Rajab, Tunisia
The Secret Agent has a real shot at winning this one. The 1970s Brazilian political thriller shows heighten tension under an authoritarian regime trying to subdue intellectualism. But I'm going with Sentimental Value. It does such a good job of exploring the trials and tribulations of a family scorned by an absent father who then reenters the lives of his now-grown up daughters. Every base is covered by Joachim Trier. Its a touching film that is bound to imbue tears.
The 98th Academy Awards begin at 7:00pm ET on ABC and Hulu