2024 Oscar Nomination Predictions

Greetings, all! The second-most-anticipated day of the year is nearly upon us; in just over 24 hours, the Oscar nominations will be unveiled, and we will all see whether our favorite films of the year find favor with the Academy or – as the case may be – are snubbed in favor of other work. Here at The Friendly Film Fan, we too enjoy the guessing games involved with what will be nominated and what is left off the list, and in 2023, many of these races are as exciting as they’ve ever been. Will Leonardo DiCaprio fail to secure a nomination for Killers of the Flower Moon? Will Past Lives surge just enough to squeeze in Greta Lee? Just how in love is the Academy with Penélope Cruz? And below decks, can May December or All of Us Strangers manage to shake up the screenplay categories? Our answers to these questions take the form of selecting the most likely nominees in each category, with 3 wildcard selections for other candidates that may slip in with just enough room to spare. It’s all on the edge of the world’s sharpest knife, just waiting to tilt to one side or the other. Here are our official predictions for the nominations at the 96th Annual Academy Awards!

BEST PICTURE
Predicted Nominees:

• American Fiction
• Anatomy of a Fall
• Barbie
• The Holdovers
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Maestro
• Oppenheimer
• Past Lives
• Poor Things
• The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• The Color Purple
• May December
• Saltburn

 
BEST DIRECTOR
Predicted Nominees:

• Justine Triet, Anatomy of a Fall
• Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
• Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things
• Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• Greta Gerwig, Barbie
• Alexander Payne, The Holdovers
• Bradley Cooper, Maestro

 
BEST ACTRESS
Predicted Nominees:

• Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall
• Carey Mulligan, Maestro
• Margot Robbie, Barbie
• Emma Stone, Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• Fantasia Barrino, The Color Purple
• Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Origin
• Greta Lee, Past Lives

 
BEST ACTOR
Predicted Nominees

• Bradley Cooper, Maestro
• Colman Domingo, Rustin
• Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
• Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
• Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction

Wildcard(s):

• Leonardo DiCaprio, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Barry Keoghan, Saltburn
• Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers

 
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Predicted Nominees:

• Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer
• Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple
• Jodie Foster, Nyad
• Rosamund Pike, Saltburn
• Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers

Wildcard(s):

• Penélope Cruz, Ferrari
• Julianne Moore, May December
• Sandra Hüller, The Zone of Interest

 
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Predicted Nominees:

• Sterling K. Brown, American Fiction
• Robert De Niro, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer
• Ryan Gosling, Barbie
• Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• Willem Dafoe, Poor Things
• Charles Melton, May December
• Dominic Sessa, The Holdovers
  

 
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Predicted Nominees:

• The Boy and the Heron
• Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget
• Elemental
• Nimona
• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Wildcard(s):

• The Super Mario Bros. Movie
• Suzume
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

 
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Predicted Nominees:

• 20 Days in Mariupol (Ukraine)
• Fallen Leaves (Finland)
• Society of the Snow (Spain)
• The Taste of Things (France)
• The Zone of Interest (United Kingdom)

Wildcard(s):

• Perfect Days (Japan)
• The Promised Land (Denmark)
• The Teachers’ Lounge (Germany)

 
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Predicted Nominees:

• 20 Days in Mariupol
• American Symphony
• Beyond Utopia
• The Eternal Memory
• Four Daughters

Wildcard(s):

• 32 Sounds
• Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
• Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

 
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Predicted Nominees:

• Rodrigo Prieto, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Matthew Libatique, Maestro
• Hoyte van Hoytema, Oppenheimer
• Robbie Ryan, Poor Things
• Łukasz Żal, The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• Dan Lausten, The Color Purple
• Edward Lachman, El Conde
• Erik Messerschmitt, The Killer

 
BEST FILM EDITING
Predicted Nominees:

• Laurent Sénéchal, Anatomy of a Fall
• Thelma Schoonmaker, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Michelle Tesoro, Maestro
• Jennifer Lame, Oppenheimer
• Yorgos Mavropsaridis, Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• William Goldenberg, Air
• Nick Houy, Barbie
• Kevin Tent, The Holdovers

 
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Predicted Nominees:

• Sarah Greenwood, Barbie
• Jack Fisk, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Ruth de Jong, Oppenheimer
• Shona Heath and James Price, Poor Things
• Chris Oddy, The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• Adam Stockhausen, Asteroid City
• Kevin Thompson, Maestro
• Suzie Davies, Saltburn

 
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Predicted Nominees:

• Jacqueline Durran, Barbie
• Francine Jamison-Tanchuck, The Color Purple
• Jacqueline West, Killers of the Flower Moon
• David Crossman and Janty Yates, Napoleon
• Holly Waddington, Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• Oliver Garcia, Chevalier
• Ellen Mirojnick, Oppenheimer
• Sophie Canale, Saltburn

 
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
Predicted Nominees:

• Golda
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Maestro
• Oppenheimer
• Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• Beau is Afraid
• The Last Voyage of the Demeter
• Napoleon

 
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Predicted Nominees:

• Robbie Robertson, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Ludwig Göransson, Oppenheimer
• Jerskin Fendrix, Poor Things
• Daniel Pemberton, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
• Mica Levi, The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• Joe Hisaishi, The Boy and the Heron
• John Williams, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
• Anthony Willis, Saltburn

 
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
Predicted Nominees:

• “The Fire Inside,” Flamin’ Hot
• “I’m Just Ken,” Barbie
• “Keep It Movin’,” The Color Purple
• “Road To Freedom,” Rustin
• “What Was I Made For?,” Barbie

Wildcard(s):

• “Am I Dreaming,” Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
• “Meet In The Middle,” Flora and Son
• “Quiet Eyes,” Past Lives

 
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Predicted Nominees:

• Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
• Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, Barbie
• Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
• Tony McNamara, Poor Things

Wildcard(s):

• Andrew Haigh, All of Us Strangers
• Ava DuVernay, Origin
• Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest

 
BEST ORIGNAL SCREENPLAY
Predicted Nominees:

• Arthur Harari and Justine Triet, Anatomy of a Fall
• David Hemingson, The Holdovers
• Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer, Maestro
• Samy Burch, May December
• Celine Song, Past Lives

Wildcard(s):

• Alex Convery, Air
• Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola, Asteroid City
• Emerald Fennell, Saltburn

 
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Predicted Nominees:

• The Creator
• Godzilla Minus One
• Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
• Poor Things
• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Wildcard(s):

• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
• Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
• Society of the Snow

 
BEST SOUND
Predicted Nominees:

• Ferrari
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Maestro
• Oppenheimer
• The Zone of Interest

Wildcard(s):

• The Creator
• The Killer
• Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

 
BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT
Predicted Nominees:

• The After
• The Anne Frank Gift Shop
• Red, White and Blue
• Strange Way of Life
• The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

Wildcard(s):

• Dead Cat
• Invincible
• The Shepherd

 
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Predicted Nominees:

• Boom
• Letter to a Pig
• Ninety-Five Senses
• Once upon a Studio
• War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko

Wildcard(s):

• Koerkorter (Dog Apartment)
• Pete
• Smoke

 
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Predicted Nominees:

• The ABCs of Book Banning
• The Barber of Little Rock
• Camp Courage
• Deciding Vote
• The Last Repair Shop

Wildcard(s):

• Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games
• Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó
• Last Song from Kabul

What do you think of these predictions? Who are you hoping to see nominated? Let us know in the comments section below, and thanks for reading!
 
- The Friendly Film Fan