A week from today the nominations for the 89th Academy Awards will be announced, and I'd expect a few jaw-dropping omissions (Ryan Gosling?) and additions (Michael Keaton?) like every year. That said, I think we'll see less surprises this year than in years past (ie. La La will sing and dance to the tune of a lot of nods. I'll also say #oscarssowhite isn't going to happen this year. There's just too many amazing performances and films to pass over this year plus Cheryl Boone Isaacs totally revamped the Academy's voting process. Anyway, here I am writing down my Oscar predictions like everybody else in the world. Read on, and predict your own. Guess right on all, and win a pony!
Best Picture
I'm going to say the Academy uses eight slots this year, but will add the last two here in case they go all the way or to nine.
Arrival
Hell or High Water
Hidden Figures
La La Land
Lion
Loving
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight
Hacksaw Ridge
Fences
Potential Surprises
Silence probably won't be golden but you never know with Marty. Nocturnal Animals is the year's most underrated flick and gets my vote for the final slot. If any shocker comes it'll be Deadpool.
Best Actor
This category could provide a huge upset in Ryan Gosling getting the shaft. It happened with Blue Valentine even though he was a favorite back then. But, I don't see it happening to the former Mouseketeer again. I can, however, see Joel Edgerton getting left out for his work in Loving and Tom Hanks finally getting back into the race despite an award-free run so far. It'll be a make-up for his failure to land a spot for his stellar work on Captain Phillips.
Casey Affleck - Manchester by the Sea
Andrew Garfield - Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan Gosling - La La Land
Tom Hanks - Sully
Denzel Washington - Fences
Potential Surprises:
Edgerton will likely edge out Hanks but I'm going to predict Sully anyway. I'd personally love to see Jake Gylenhaal get some love for Nocturnal Animals. Other potential upsets -
Viggo Mortensen for Captain Fantastic or Michael Keaton for The Founder. The latter seems like a huge long shot.
Best Actress:
Amy Adams - Arrival
Annette Bening - 20th Century Women
Isabelle Huppert - Elle
Natalie Portman - Jackie
Emma Stone - La La Land
Possible Surprises:
This was a great year for actresses and many could find themselves shut out. I'm going to guess
Meryl Streep just misses for Florence Foster Jenkins and ditto for Taraji P. Henson for Hidden Figures. Ruth Negga, so good in Loving, may also just miss unless the Academy skips Golden Globe winner Huppert, which could happen. I'll say this if Annette Bening scores one for 20th Century Women, I suspect she will win the whole thing. She's been due forever, and one-time frontrunner Portman already has one. Then again, maybe this is finally Adams year. Anyway, we'll get to that later.
Best Supporting Actor:
Mahershala Ali - Moonlight
Jeff Bridges - Hell or High Water
Hugh Grant - Florence Foster Jenkins
Dev Patel - Lion
Aaron Taylor-Johnson -Nocturnal Animals
Possible Surprises:
This is the one category I can see the Academy really going bananas over. Patel could get left off for Lucas Hedges of Manchester by the Sea. I could see Taylor-Johnson's co-star Michael Shannon picking up the Nocturnal nod. I wouldn't be surprised if Grant were left off and Trevante Rhodes shocked with a nod for Moonlight or Ben Foster nabbing a spot in Hell over Bridges.
Best Supporting Actress:
Viola Davis - Fences
Naomie Harris - Moonlight
Nicole Kidman - Lion
Octavia Spencer - Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams - Manchester By the Sea
Possible Surprises:
For me, this is the easiest category to call. Only 20th Century Women's Greta Gerwig or
Hidden Figures' Janelle Monáe could slide in, and if they do, they'd likely replace Spencer.
Best Director:
Damien Chazelle - La La Land
Garth Davis - Lion
Barry Jenkins - Moonlight
Martin Scorsese - Silence
Denis Villeneuve - Arrival
Possible Surprises:
I'm being silly here but I already regret saying Streep isn't going to get nominated so I'm going to say equal juggernaut Scorsese won't be. I don't know if my logic makes sense. Probably not. Anyway, I think the Academy will honor his passion project and honor Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea) and Tom Ford (Nocturnal Animals) solely in the screenwriting categories. I'll eat my words I'm sure. I wouldn't be surprised if Scorses and Davis get left out in favor of that pair - especially Lonergan - and quite possibly Denzel Washington for Fences. That said, the latter would be a misfire. Washington's performance in that flick is among his best, if not his best. The direction left a lot to be desired.
About A-Sides with Jon Chattman - thisisasides.com :
Jon Chattman's music series typically features talent (established or not) from all genres performing a track or two, and discussing their latest news, songs, and everything in-between. A-Sides focuses on the artist making art in a low-threatening, extremely informal (sometime humorous) way. No bells, no whistles -- just the music performed in a random, low-key setting followed by an unrehearsed chat. In an industry where everything often gets overblown and over manufactured, Jon strives for a refreshing change. From time to time, the series also features humor columns, film/TV personality interviews, and a kid-centric spin-off called "Lowercase A-Sides." Artists featured on the series have included Elle King, Joe Perry, Alice Cooper, James Bay, Jimmy Eat World, Imagine Dragons, Melissa Etheridge, Yoko Ono, Charli XCX, Marina and the Diamonds, and Bastille. Theme song written and performed by Blondfire.