2026 Oscar Predictions
Who will take home an Oscar in 2026? Check out Script magazine contributor Sonya Alexander’s predictions.
2025 had films for everyone. From horror to franchise favorites to scintillating originals. The year also had a strong international presence, with The Secret Agent, It Was Just An Accident, Sirāt, Sentimental Value, and No Other Choice getting nominations and buzz during Awards Season. Across the board, there were some outstanding performances.
The year was an embarrassment of riches in film offerings and it’s truly a toss-up this year as to who or what could get nominated for some of the categories. Oscars nominations will take place on January 22. Below are some of my predictions for the upcoming Academy Awards nominations and winners.
Best Picture
One Battle After Another
Sinners
The Secret Agent
Train Dreams
It Was Just an Accident
Jay Kelly
Hamnet
Sentimental Value
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another has fresh characters and an audacious storyline that’s created a roller coaster ride of a film.
Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another
Timothée Chalamet - Marty Supreme
Michael B. Jordan - Sinners
Joel Edgerton - Train Dreams
Wagner Moura - The Secret Agent
The Brazil native gives a magnetic performance of quiet intensity as Marcelo/Armando/Fernando.
Best Actress
Emma Stone - Bugonia
Rose Byrne - If I Had Legs I'd Kick You
Jessie Buckley - Hamnet
Amanda Seyfried - The Testament of Ann Lee
Renate Reinsve - Sentimental Value
Jessie Buckley as Agnes is the emotional well of the story and she portrays her with a ferocity and vulnerability.
Best Supporting Actor
Jacob Elordi - Frankenstein
Benecio del Toro - One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård - Sentimental Value
Sean Penn - One Battle After Another
Adam Sandler - Jay Kelly
Sean Penn inhabits his roles and as Steven J. Lockjaw he’s a wildcard monster who’s clueless because of his hubris.
Best Supporting Actress
Amy Madigan - Weapons
Teyana Taylor - One Battle After Another
Odessa A’zion - Marty Supreme
Wunmi Mosaku - Sinners
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas - Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan brilliantly rides the fine line between horror and comedy as sorceress Aunt Gladys.
Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson - One Battle After Another
Ryan Coogler - Sinners
Guillermo del Toro - Frankenstein
Josh Safdie - Marty Supreme
Chloé Zhao - Hamnet
Paul Thomas Anderson has been nominated numerous times so this could finally be his year.
Best International Feature Film
The Secret Agent
Sirāt
It Was Just An Accident
No Other Choice
Sentimental Value
The Secret Agent is a unique gem of a film that captures a corrupt era in Brazil’s history that resonates globally even today.
Best Animated Film
Arco
KPop Demon Hunters
Zootopia 2
Ne Zha 2
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Ugo Bienvenu’s 2D animated film Arco is a charming futuristic tale that has a heart of gold.
My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 - Last Air in Moscow
The Perfect Neighbor
Orwell: 2+2=5
Cover-Up
Mr. Scorsese
Raoul Peck’s Orwell: 2+2= 5 presents George Owell’s prescient writings in historical context, creating a searing indictment of government overreach and authoritarianism.
Best Original Screenplay
Sinners - Ryan Coogler
Sentimental Value - Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt
Marty Supreme - Josh Safdie, Ronald Bronstein
The Secret Agent - Kleber Mendonça Filho
Jay Kelly - Noah Baumbach, Emily Mortimer
Marty Supreme is loosely based on table tennis champion and wheeler dealer Marty Reisman and Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein have turned his story into a magnificently fast-paced whirligig of a story about competition, delusion, and discovering what’s really important in life.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Train Dreams - Craig Bentley, Greg Kwedar
One Battle After Another - Paul Thomas Anderson
Hamnet - Maggie O'Farrell, Chloe Zhao
Frankenstein - Guillermo del Toro
No Other Choice - Park Chan-wook, Lee Kyoung-mi, Jahyee Lee
The adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel Vineland is updated to modern times and settings but still magnificently captures the spirit of the book.
Best Original Score
Train Dreams - Bryce Dessner
Sinners - Ludwig Göransson
Sirāt - Kangding Ray
Frankenstein - Alexander Desplat
Wicked: For Good - John Powell, Stephen Schwartz
Ludwig Göransson’s score casts a spell from the first note and gloriously sweeps us through this period drama that has horror, supernatural and corporeal, at its core.
Best Original Song
KPop Demon Hunters - “Golden” - EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, IDO, 24, Teddy
Sinners - “I Lied to You” - Raphael Saadiq, Ludwig Göransson
Train Dreams - “Train Dreams” - Nick Cave, Bryce Dessner
Wicked: For Good - “No Place Like Home” - Stephen Schwartz
Avatar: Fire & Ash - “Dream As One” - Miley Cyrus, Andrew Wyatt, Mark Ronson, Simon Franglen
Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner’s “Train Dreams” is haunting and mournful, perfectly setting the tone for this tale about changing times and the significance of the everyman.
Best Cinematography
Train Dreams - Adolpho Veloso
Sinners - Autumn Durald Arkapaw
One Battle After Another - Michael Bauman
Frankenstein - Dan Laustsen
Hamnet - Łukasz Żal
Adolpho Veloso’s cinematography masterfully transports us to the natural beauty of a bygone era in the Idaho Panhandle and the Pacific Northwest.
Best Production Design
Sinners
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
Frankenstein
Wicked: For Good
Tamara Deverell palpably conveys the moodiness, danger, and refinement of Dr. Victor Frankenstein and the Monster’s surroundings.
Best Visual Effects
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Superman
Frankenstein
Sinners
Wicket: For Good
Wētā FX team, including Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, and Daniel Barrett, bring the world of Pandora back to life in eye-popping 3D with a phenomenal and unforgettable landscape of colors and special effects.
Best Sound
F1
Sinners
Frankenstein
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning
Wicked: For Good
Hans Zimmer and Skywalker Sound have created an ultra-sonic experience, meshing the propulsive sounds of Formula 1 cars with a soaring soundtrack.
Best Costume Design
Hamnet
Frankenstein
Sinners
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
From Victor Frankenstein’s polished shoes to Elizabeth’s pristine gowns, Kate Hawley creates measured authenticity in this gothic realm.
Best Film Editing
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein’s swift and whip smart editing successfully create the organized chaos of Marty’s world.
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Wicked: For Good
The Smashing Machine
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Hamnet
Sinners
Sarah Rubano leads a team of various artists, including SFX makeup, hair and makeup, and senior artists, that deliver with supreme craftsmanship the larger-than-life images of the film.
Best Achievement in Casting Casting (New Category)
Sinners
Sentimental Value
One Battle After Another
Marty Supreme
Frankenstein
Casting veteran Francine Maisler has assembled a diverse cast that has amazing chemistry together and phenomenally bring their individual characters to life.
The 2026 Oscars air live on ABC on Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Sonya Alexander started off her career training to be a talent agent. She eventually realized she was meant to be on the creative end and has been writing ever since. As a freelance writer she’s written screenplays, covered film, television, music and video games and done academic writing. She’s also been a script reader for over twenty years. She's a member of the African American Film Critics Association and currently resides in Los Angeles.
