Celebrities in a variety of categories will descend in their finest dresses and tuxes for the 98th Academy Awards (also known as the Oscars) March 15 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. The Oscars are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It is a prestigious event that started back in 1929 and has continued onwards until now.
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio will win the Best Actor Award in the Oscars because his performance in “One Battle after Another” was just outstanding. It really showed how he expanded his earlier roles in his acting career starting from the “Titanic” to “One Battle After Another.” Huge transformation, and DiCaprio is a big name, which further pushes my prediction that he will win Best Actor. Other nominees include Timothee Chalamet for “Marty Supreme,” Ethan Hawke for “Blue Moon,” Michael B. Jordan for “Sinners” and Wagner Moura for “The Secret Agent.”
Best Actress: Next, Jessie Buckley will receive the award for Best Actress. Her performance was super emotional in her motherly role in “Hamnet.” There were a lot of strong contenders like Emma Stone and Rose Burn, but Buckley shined through with the emotional aspects of motherhood and the emotions she elicited with this performance. If she doesn’t win this award, I would be very shocked. Other nominees include Rose Byrne for “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” Kate Hudson for “Song Sung Blue,” Renate Reinsive for “Sentimental Value” and Emma Stone for “Bugonia.”
Best Supporting Actress: Wunmi Mosaku will win Best Supporting Actress because her portrayal as a hoodoo practitioner was just amazing in “Sinners,” portraying the practice of hoodoo with care and respect, while also giving the character Annie a spunky personality. She effortlessly acted in “Sinners” and without Wunmi playing Annie, the movie would’ve lost some of the soul that it has. There are some strong contenders such as Elle Fanning for “Sentimental Value” and Teyana Taylor for “One Battle After Another” but Wunmi takes the cake for best supporting actress! Other Nominees include Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas for “Sentimental Value” and Amy Madigan for “Weapons.”
Best Supporting Actor: Delroy Lindo will win the award for Best Supporting Actor because his performance in “Sinners.” He perfectly portrayed a blues musician, and he had comedic timing that flowed naturally with the scenes that he was in, effortlessly portraying the struggles a black man faces in the 1930s. I cannot see anyone else but Delroy Lindo winning Best Supporting Actor. Other nominees include Benicio Del Toro for “One Battle After Another,” Jabob Elordi for “Frankenstein,” Sean Penn for “One Battle After Another,” and Stellan Skarsgard for “Sentimental Value.”
Best Picture: I predict that “Sinners” will win the Best Picture award because of the cultural impact that it had and continues to have. It brought back the popularity of vampires while simultaneously portraying Black, Irish and Chinese cultures during the 1930s. “Sinners” broke the record for the most nominations at the Oscars with 16 nominations in different categories. It also came back to theatres the same year it was released. It’s a pop culture phenomenon and it was a big hit at my house. If “Sinners” doesn’t win best picture, I’ll be very disappointed. Other nominees include “Bugonia,” “F1,” “Frankenstein,” “Hamnet,” “Marty Supreme,” “One Battle After Another,” “The Secret Agent,” “Sentimental Value,” and “Train Dreams.”
All the movies that were nominated were great movies. This was one of the best years yet for movies as there was a lot of strong contenders in the best actor and actress roles, as well as supporting and best picture roles. To see if these predictions come true, watch the Oscars on ABC March 15, 4 p.m. Pacific time.
