After some careful consideration (including a few last-minute changes) and difficult decisions, I have locked in my predictions for the 93rd Annual Academy Awards. And they are:
Best Picture – “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Alternate: “Nomadland”)
Best Director – Chloe Zhao, “Nomadland” (Alternate: David Fincher, “Mank”)
Best Actor – Chadwick Boseman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Alternate: Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”)
Best Actress – Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Alternate: Frances McDormand, “Nomadland”)
Best Supporting Actor – Daniel Kaluuya, “Judas and the Black Messiah” (Alternate: Paul Raci, “Sound of Metal”)
Best Supporting Actress – Yuh-jung Youn, “Minari” (Alternate: Glenn Close, “Hillbilly Elegy”)
Best Animated Feature – “Soul” (Alternate: “Wolfwalkers”)
Best Animated Short Film – “Burrow” (Alternate: “If Anything Happens, I Love You”)
Best Documentary Feature – “Time” (Alternate: “Crip Camp”)
Best Documentary Short Film – “A Concerto Is a Conversation” (Alternate: “Colette”)
Best International Feature – “Another Round” (Alternate: “Quo Vadis, Aida?”)
Best Live-Action Short Film – “The Letter Room” (Alternate: “Two Distant Strangers”)
Best Original Screenplay – “Promising Young Woman” (Alternate: “The Trial of the Chicago 7”)
Best Adapted Screenplay – “The Father” (Alternate: “Nomadland”)
Best Cinematography – “Nomadland” (Alternate: “Mank”)
Best Film Editing – “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Alternate: “Sound of Metal”)
Best Sound – “Sound of Metal” (Alternate: “Mank”)
Best Visual Effects – “TENET” (Alternate: “The Midnight Sky”)
Best Costume Design – “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Alternate: “Mulan”)
Best Makeup & Hairstyling – “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Alternate: “Pinocchio”)
Best Production Design – “Mank” (Alternate: “The Father”)
Best Original Score – “Soul” (Alternate: “News of the World”)
Best Original Song – “Io Si (Seen)”, “The Life Ahead” (Alternate: “Speak Now”, “One Night in Miami”)
BONUS: RANKING THE BEST PICTURE NOMINEES
“Sound of Metal”
“Mank”
“The Trial of the Chicago 7”
“Nomadland”
“Minari”
“Judas and the Black Messiah”
“Promising Young Woman”
“The Father”
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” will lead with four wins (even though it’s not even in the Best Picture category). The ceremony will only go over by a few minutes, ending at 11:05pmET. And hopefully it will conclude a unique awards season on a high note.