Oscar Watch: 2020
The final countdown until Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020.
With 14 weeks to go: A Bombshell, some Little Women, and Taylor Swift enter the race, oh my! Here’s a look at who’s up, who’s down and who’s staying in the game.
Oscar Races
Top categories of the week:
Best Picture
Stock Exchange: This year’s big female-driven movies—Bombshell starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie, and Greta Gerwig’s remake of Little Women—have finally arrived. But where exactly do they fit in the fight for top prize? Based on feedback from The Ringer, Vanity Fair, Vulture and others, both films have a strong chance to shake up what would be a male-dominated year.
Top Noms: A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Bombshell, Ford v Ferrari, Jojo Rabbit, Joker, Little Women, Marriage Story, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Parasite, The Irishman
Other Contenders: 1917, Just Mercy, Pain and Glory, Queen and Slim, Rocketman, The Farewell, The Two Popes, Toy Story 4, Uncut Gems, Waves
Best Supporting Actress
Stock Exchange: How long can the love for Jennifer Lopez hold on now that Bombshell and Little Women are starting to get attention? Also, what happens to Margot Robbie now that she’s potentially up against herself? Vanity Fair attempts to answer that question, but it’s still to be determined which film role she’ll ultimately push for.
Top Noms: Florence Pugh (Little Women), Jennifer Lopez (Hustlers), Laura Dern (Marriage Story), Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey), Margot Robbie (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood)
Other Contenders: Annette Bening (The Report), Judi Dench (Cats), Margot Robbie (Bombshell), Nicole Kidman (Bombshell), Scarlett Johansson (Jojo Rabbit), Shuzhen Zhao (The Farewell)
[Read more: “Why 2019 Is Jennifer Lopez’s Best Year Yet, and How 2020 Is Going to Be Even Better”]
Best Supporting Actor
Stock Exchange: In a year full of dueling male performances in the same film—and likely this year’s biggest example of category fraud among leading and supporting categories—The Irishman faces the biggest competition against itself with a well-received performance by Al Pacino and a much-welcomed return by Joe Pesci. Will they cancel each other out?
Top Noms: Al Pacino (The Irishman), Anthony Hopkins (The Two Popes), Brad Pitt (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Joe Pesci (The Irishman), Tom Hanks (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood)
Other Contenders: Alan Alda (Marriage Story), Billy Eichner (The Lion King), Jamie Foxx (Just Mercy), Robert Downey, Jr. (Avengers: Endgame), Shia LaBeouf (Honey Boy), Sam Rockwell (Jojo Rabbit), Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit), Timothee Chalamet (Little Women), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse)
Best Director
Stock Exchange: Why has no one started the James Cameron v Kathryn Bigelow 2.0 narrative with Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig? Sure, they just had a kid, are seemingly happy together and are reportedly co-writing the Barbie film adaptation, but it’s the closest thing we have to a rival this year.
Top Noms: Bong Joon-ho (Parasite), Greta Gerwig (Little Women), Martin Scorsese (The Irishman), Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story), Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood)
Other Contenders: Fernando Meirelles (The Two Popes), Jay Roach (Bombshell), Lulu Wang (The Farewell), Pedro Almodovar (Pain and Glory), Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit), Terrence Malick (A Hidden Life), Todd Phillips (Joker)
Best Original Song
Stock Exchange: It was confirmed that Taylor Swift co-wrote a new song for Tom Hopper’s adaptation of the hit musical with composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, officially putting her in the Oscar race against would-be nominees Beyonce, Cynthia Erivo, Elton John and whatever comes out of Frozen 2.
Top Noms: “Beautiful Ghosts” (Cats), “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” (Rocketman), “Into the Unknown” (Frozen 2), “Spirit” (The Lion King), “Stand Up” (Harriet)
Other Contenders: “Broken & Beautiful” (Ugly Dolls), “Don’t Call Me Angel” (Charlie’s Angels), “Don’t Give Up on Me” (Five Feet Apart), “Speechless” (Aladdin), “The Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy” (Toy Story 4)
The other major races:
Best Actress
Top Noms: Charlize Theron (Bombshell), Lupita Nyong’o (Us), Renée Zellweger (Judy), Saoirse Ronan (Little Women), Scarlett Johansson (Marriage Story)
Other Contenders: Alfre Woodard (Clemency), Awkwafina (The Farewell), Cynthia Erivo (Harriet), Elisabeth Moss (Her Smell), Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim)
[Read more: “Will ‘Us’ Land Lupita Nyong’o an Oscar Nomination? It Should.”]
Best Actor
Top Noms: Adam Driver (Marriage Story), Joaquin Phoenix (Joker), Jonathan Pryce (The Two Popes), Leonardo DiCaprio (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Robert De Niro (The Irishman)
Other Contenders: Adam Sandler (Uncut Gems), Antonio Banderas (Pain and Glory), Christian Bale (Ford v Ferrari), Daniel Kaluuya (Queen & Slim), Eddie Murphy (Dolemite Is My Name), Matt Damon (Ford v Ferrari), Michael B. Jordan (Just Mercy), Taron Egerton (Rocketman), Shia LaBeouf (The Peanut Butter Falcon)
Best Adapted Screenplay
Top Noms: A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (Micah Fitzerman-Blue & Noah Harpster), Hustlers (Lorene Scafaria), Jojo Rabbit (Taika Waititi), Joker (Todd Phillips & Scott Silver), Toy Story 4 (Stephany Folsom & Andrew Stanton)
Other Contenders: Downton Abbey (Julian Fellowes), Judy (Tom Edge), Just Mercy (Destin Daniel Cretton & Andrew Lanham), Little Women (Greta Gerwig), Motherless Brooklyn (Edward Norton), The Irishman (Steven Zaillian), The Two Popes (Anthony McCarten)
Best Original Screenplay
Top Noms: Booksmart (Susanna Fogel, Emily Halpern, Susan Haskins & Katie Silberman), Marriage Story (Noah Baumbach), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Quentin Tarantino), Parasite (Bong Joon-ho & Jin Won Han), The Farewell (Lulu Wang)
Other Contenders: A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick), Bombshell (Charles Randolph), Dolemite Is My Name (Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski), Honey Boy (Shia LaBeouf), Knives Out (Rian Johnson), Midsommar (Ari Aster), Pain and Glory (Pedro Almodovar), Queen & Slim (Lena Waithe), The Lighthouse (Max Eggers & Robert Eggers), Us (Jordan Peele), Waves (Trey Edward Shults)
Best Animated Film
Top Noms: Abominable, Frozen 2, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, The Secret Life of Pets 2, Toy Story 4
Other Contenders: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, Funan, I Lost My Body, Klaus, Missing Link, Weathering With You
Remaining Timeline
Week 2
Saturday, Nov. 16: Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations
Week 5
Monday, Dec. 2: Gotham Awards
Tuesday, Dec. 3: National Board of Review winners
Week 6
Monday, Dec. 9: Golden Globe nominations
Week 10
Sunday, Jan. 5: Golden Globes
Tuesday, Jan. 7: New York Film Critics Circle Awards
Week 11
Sunday, Jan. 12: Critics Choice Awards
Monday, Jan. 13: Oscar nominations announced
Friday, Jan. 17: American Cinema Editors Eddie Awards
Saturday, Jan. 18: Producers Guild of America Awards
Week 12
Sunday, Jan. 19: Screen Actors Guild Awards
Saturday, Jan. 25: Directors Guild of America Awards
Saturday, Jan. 25: American Society of Cinematographers Awards
Week 13
Tuesday, Jan. 28: Costume Designers Guild Awards
Saturday, Feb. 1: Art Directors Guild Awards
Saturday, Feb. 1: Writers Guild of America Awards
Week 14
Sunday, Feb. 2: British Academy of Film & Television Arts Awards
Saturday, Feb. 8: Film Independent Spirit Awards
Sunday, Feb. 9: Oscars ceremony
