Every year, I share a series of posts revolving around the Oscars. While it may seem like there weren't many films released in 2020, 366 total feature films were eligible for this 93rd Academy Awards. That's the most that have been in contention for the Oscars since 1970, where 374 were eligible. This is largely due to flexibility in eligibility requirements seeing as theaters were closed for a majority of the year. Therefore, streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video will have a huge presence among the nominees. While streamers have steadily become more prominent in the awards race for film and television, this could potentially signal the start of a major paradigm shift towards streaming.
This post will detail the films I'd personally nominate for each category and what I suspect will be nominated. While I definitely didn't see as many films as I usually would due to the pandemic, I think I've seen enough of the contenders and films I was personally interested in to carry forward with this tradition. Many of the films I mention throughout this list will be films I've yet to review since I'm behind on reviews. Those reviews will come in time, and one of my main priorities will be to get those all out in addition to my Top 10 Films of 2020 before this Oscars air on April 25th.
As always, my picks consist of long shots and likely nominees. If something's not listed, it probably barely missed the cut and there were many categories that were especially difficult to whittle down. As for my predictions, I looked to the precursor award show nominees, shortlists, and patterns I've noticed in recent years. It's very unlikely all of these predictions will pan out since there are always surprises and snubs. Nevertheless, I'm going to give it my best shot and see how close I am tomorrow. You'll also probably notice that a few of the more obscure categories are missing and that's because I haven't seen enough documentaries, shorts, or foreign films this year.
My 2021 Oscar Nominee Picks and Predictions
Best Picture
My Personal Picks:
"Another Round"
"Borat Subsequent Moviefilm"
"Da 5 Bloods"
"The Father"
"Judas and the Black Messiah"
"Minari"
"Palm Springs"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Sound of Metal"
"Soul"
**The Academy has a sliding scale of Best Picture nominees every year, so I'm listing nine in my predictions**
My Predictions:
"The Father"
"Judas and the Black Messiah"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Mank"
"Minari"
"Nomadland"
"One Night in Miami"
"Promising Young Woman"
"The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Best Director
My Personal Picks: (I'm selecting six nominees here because I couldn't decide on five)
Emerald Fennell, "Promising Young Woman"
Lee Isaac Chung, "Minari"
Spike Lee, "Da 5 Bloods"
Christopher Nolan, "Tenet"
Florian Zeller, "The Father"
Chloé Zhao, "Nomadland"
My Predictions:
Emerald Fennell, "Promising Young Woman"
David Fincher, "Mank"
Lee Isaac Chung, "Minari"
Aaron Sorkin, "The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Chloé Zhao, "Nomadland"
Best Actor
My Personal Picks: (I'm selecting six nominees here because I couldn't decide on five)
Riz Ahmed, "Sound of Metal"
Chadwick Boseman, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
Anthony Hopkins, "The Father"
Delroy Lindo, "Da 5 Bloods"
Mads Mikkelsen, "Another Round"
Steven Yeun, "Minari"
My Predictions:
Riz Ahmed, "Sound of Metal"
Chadwick Boseman, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
Anthony Hopkins, "The Father"
Gary Oldman, "Mank"
Steven Yeun, "Minari"
Best Actress
My Personal Picks:
Andra Day, "The United States vs. Billie Holiday"
Vanessa Kirby, "Pieces of a Woman"
Cristin Milioti, "Palm Springs"
Carey Mulligan, "Promising Young Woman"
Han Ye-ri, "Minari"
My Predictions:
Viola Davis, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
Andra Day, "The United States vs. Billie Holiday"
Vanessa Kirby, "Pieces of a Woman"
Frances McDormand, "Nomadland"
Carey Mulligan, "Promising Young Woman"
Best Supporting Actor
My Personal Picks:
Chadwick Boseman, "Da 5 Bloods"
Daniel Kaluuya, "Judas and the Black Messiah"
Alan Kim, "Minari"
Bill Murray, "On The Rocks"
Paul Raci, "Sound of Metal"
My Predictions:
Sacha Baron Cohen, "The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Chadwick Boseman, "Da 5 Bloods"
Chadwick Boseman, "Da 5 Bloods"
Daniel Kaluuya, "Judas and the Black Messiah"
Jared Leto, "The Little Things"
Leslie Odom Jr., "One Night in Miami"
Best Supporting Actress
My Personal Picks:
Maria Bakalova, "Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm"
Olivia Colman, "The Father"
Amanda Seyfried, "Mank"
Youn Yuh-Jung, "Minari"
Helena Zengel, "News of the World"
My Predictions:
Maria Bakalova, "Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm"
Olivia Colman, "The Father"
Jodie Foster, "The Mauritanian"
Amanda Seyfried, "Mank"
Youn Yuh-Jung, "Minari"
Best Original Screenplay
My Personal Picks: (I'm selecting six nominees here because I couldn't decide on five)
"Another Round"
"Da 5 Bloods"
"Minari"
"Palm Springs"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Soul"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"Minari"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Sound of Metal"
"The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Best Adapted Screenplay
My Personal Picks:
"Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm"
"The Father"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Nomadland"
"One Night in Miami"
My Predictions:
"Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm"
"The Father"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Nomadland"
"One Night in Miami"
Best Film Editing
My Personal Picks:
"The Father"
"The Father"
"Nomadland"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Sound of Metal"
"Tenet"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"Nomadland"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Sound of Metal"
"The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Best Cinematography
My Personal Picks:
"Another Round"
"Another Round"
"Da 5 Bloods"
"Mank"
"Minari"
"Nomadland"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"Minari"
"News of the World"
"Nomadland"
"The Trial of the Chicago 7"
Best Costume Design
My Personal Picks:
"Emma"
"Emma"
"Mank"
"Mulan"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Wonder Woman 1984"
My Predictions:
"Emma"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Mank"
"Mulan"
"Promising Young Woman"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
My Personal Picks:
"Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)"
"Emma"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Mank"
"Pinocchio"
My Predictions:
"Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)"
"Hillbilly Elegy"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Mank"
"Pinocchio"
Best Production Design
My Personal Picks:
"The Father"
"Mank"
"Mulan"
"Promising Young Woman"
"Tenet"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"The Midnight Sky"
"News of the World"
"Tenet"
Best Visual Effects
My Personal Picks:
"Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)"
"Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)"
"The Invisible Man"
"Mank"
"Soul"
"Tenet"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"The Midnight Sky"
"Soul"
"Tenet"
"Welcome to Chechnya"
Best Sound
My Personal Picks:
"Da 5 Bloods"
"Da 5 Bloods"
"The Invisible Man"
"Mank"
"Sound of Metal"
"Tenet"
My Predictions:
"Greyhound"
"Mank"
"News of the World"
"Nomadland"
"Sound of Metal"
Best Original Song
My Personal Picks:
"Húsavík" from "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga"
"Io Si (Seen)" from "The Life Ahead"
"The Plan" from "Tenet"
"Rain Song" from "Minari"
"Speak Now" from "One Night in Miami"
My Predictions:
"Fight For You" from "Judas and the Black Messiah"
"Fight For You" from "Judas and the Black Messiah"
"Hear My Voice" from "The Trial of the Chicago 7"
"Turntables" from "All In: The Fight For Democracy"
"Io Si (Seen)" from "The Life Ahead"
"Speak Now" from "One Night in Miami"
Best Original Score
My Personal Picks:
"Mank"
"Mank"
"Minari"
"Soul"
"Tenet"
"Wolfwalkers"
My Predictions:
"Mank"
"The Midnight Sky"
"Minari"
"Soul"
"Tenet"
Best Animated Feature
My Personal Picks: (I only saw four animated films last year as of writing this)
"The Croods: A New Age"
"The Croods: A New Age"
"Onward"
"Soul"
"Wolfwalkers"
My Predictions:
"The Croods: A New Age""Onward"
"Over The Moon"
"Soul"
"Wolfwalkers"
