Oscars 2022 – Our 94th Academy Awards Predictions

It is that time of year once again, the Oscars 2022. The awards season is coming to an end, and the big day is almost upon us. The 94th Academy Awards will take place this Sunday, 27th March, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

It’s another interesting year for the Oscars, with modified eligibility criteria carrying over from last year due to the still ongoing pandemic. This has allowed longer eligibility windows and direct-to-digital releases to become more involved in the nominations. This year also sees ten nominees for Best Picture, the most possible after the rule changes implemented in 2012.

It’s been an exciting year for film, in spite of all the problems the industry has faced during the pandemic and change in customer habits. In a flourishing world of digital releases and hybrid “programming”, cinema is changing, and it seems the Oscars are trying to keep up. The nominees this year are diverse and include, in our opinion, films that would not necessarily have been nominated for the big awards previously. Especially those from the likes of Netflix and AppleTV+.

As is the tradition from us, we are going to make our predictions for whom we would like to win in the major categories at the Oscars this year.

Legend:
???? – Bookie’s Favourite
???? – Dave’s Pick
???? – Greg’s Pick

Best Picture Nominees:

• Licorice Pizza (2021) – Paul Thomas Anderson – United Artists Releasing
• Dune (2021) – Denis Villeneuve – Warner Bros. Pictures
• CODA (2021) – Sian Heder – Apple TV+ ????
• West Side Story (2021) – Steven Spielberg – 20th Century Studios
• Don’t Look Up (2021) – Adam McKay – Netflix
• Belfast (2021) – Kenneth Branagh – Universal Pictures
• Drive My Car (2021) – Ryusuke Hamaguchi – Bitters End
• King Richard (2021) – Reinaldo Marcus Green – Warner Bros. Pictures
• Nightmare Alley (2021) – Guillermo del Toro – Searchlight Pictures
• The Power of the Dog (2021) – Jane Campion – Netflix ???? ????

Dave says: “I had been thinking The Power of the Dog would run away with it for quite a while. But after CODA picked up the best cast at the SAGs, amongst other awards, it’s become a bit of a dark horse, and I’m backing it. Such a fantastic and heartwarming film.”

Greg says: “I will go all in on the bookie’s favourite in this category. I think The Power of the Dog may pick up Oscar for Best Picture.”

Best Director Nominees:

• Kenneth Branagh – Belfast (2021) ????
• Ryusuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car (2021)
• Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza (2021)
• Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog (2021) ???? ????
• Steven Spielberg – West Side Story (2021)

Dave says: “Although I am backing CODA (2021) for the Best Picture, Power of the Dog (2021) is an incredible film still and so I am backing Jane Campion to pick up that Best Director award..”

Greg says: “I’m backing Branagh for Best Director. He’s well known as one of our great actors, but in my opinion he also follows in the footsteps of the great Richard Attenborough and has proved himself to be an excellent director.”

Best Actor Nominees:

• Javier Bardem – as Desi Arnaz in Being the Ricardos (2021)
• Benedict Cumberbatch – as Phil Burbank in The Power of the Dog (2021) ????
• Andrew Garfield – as Jonathan Larson in Tick, Tick… Boom! (2021)
• Will Smith – as Richard Williams in King Richard (2021) ????
• Denzel Washington – as Lord Macbeth in The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) ????

Dave says: “For me, I’m backing Benedict for his performance in The Power of The Dog (2021). I’ve never seen Cumberbatch act in a role that is so evil, so much of a b*st*rd. Truly amazing.”

Greg says: “Denzel is one of the very best movie actors out there. I would love to see him pick this one up for his work here.”

Best Actress Nominees:

• Jessica Chastain – as Tammy Faye in The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021) ???? ????
• Olivia Colman – as Leda Caruso in The Lost Daughter (2021)
• Penélope Cruz – as Janis Martínez Moreno in Parallel Mothers (2021)
• Nicole Kidman – as Lucille Ball in Being the Ricardos (2021)
• Kristen Stewart – as Diana, Princess of Wales in Spencer (2021) ????

Dave says: “Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye is truly incredible. It’s without a doubt the best part of the film. The way she manages to convince you she is the same character at different ages is remarkable.”

Greg says: “I’d love to see Kristen Stewart get this one. I feel that Spencer has been a bit snubbed across all of this year’s award shows. A win here would be some recompense, and Stewart was outstanding in her portrayal.”

Best Supporting Actor Nominees:

• Ciarán Hinds – as Pop in Belfast (2021) ????
• Troy Kotsur – as Frank Rossi in CODA (2021) ???? ????
• Jesse Plemons – as George Burbank in The Power of the Dog (2021)
• J. K. Simmons – as William Frawley in Being the Ricardos (2021)
• Kodi Smit-McPhee – as Peter Gordon in The Power of the Dog (2021)

Dave says: “He is the strong favourite, having already bagged a handful of awards at other shows, but there is good reason Troy Kotsur is being lauded. Amazing perforance with nuance and emotion that anchors the rest of the cast around him. He has made history as the first deaf male actor to be nominated for an Oscar. Let’s make it the first to win!”

Greg says: “I loved Ciarán Hinds performance in Belfast. He captured something very special and his chemistry with Jude Hill and Judy Dench was so natural and endearing.”

Best Supporting Actress Nominees:

• Jessie Buckley – as Young Leda Caruso in The Lost Daughter (2021)
• Ariana DeBose – as Anita in West Side Story (2021) ???? ????
• Judi Dench – as Granny in Belfast (2021)
• Kirsten Dunst – as Rose Gordon in The Power of the Dog (2021) ????
• Aunjanue Ellis – as Oracene “Brandy” Price King Richard (2021)

Dave says: “Out of a very strong cast, Ariana DeBose shone the brightest in the magical West Side Story (2021) from Spielberg. Her duet with Rachel Zegler as Maria was stunning!”

Greg says: “Kirsten Dunst was excellent in The Power of the Dog. A very emotional and committed performance that showed a marvellous range and gave the character a believable vulnerability”

So there is our thoughts on all the major categories, below we have selected our picks from all the other smaller categories available.

Legend:
???? – Bookie’s Favourite
???? – Dave’s Pick
???? – Greg’s Pick

Best Sound

• Belfast (2021) – Denise Yarde, Simon Chase, James Mather and Niv Adiri
• Dune (2021) – Mac Ruth, Mark Mangini, Theo Green, Doug Hemphill and Ron Bartlett ???? ????
• No Time to Die (2021) – Simon Hayes, Oliver Tarney, James Harrison, Paul Massey and Mark Taylor ????
• The Power of the Dog (2021) – Richard Flynn, Robert Mackenzie and Tara Webb
• West Side Story (2021) – Tod A. Maitland, Gary Rydstrom, Brian Chumney, Andy Nelson and Shawn Murphy

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If you’re a fan of the Academy Awards ceremonies, take a look at a special podcast episode we recorded last year in which we discuss some of our favourite Oscars moments and chat about the history of the awards…

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And there we go, there are our picks for the Oscars 2022!

Do you agree with our choices? Let us know your picks in the comments down below.

Be sure to check out last years coverage of the Oscars here on the website.

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