It seems like a lifetime ago that Sean Baker’s screwball comedy “Anora” first emerged as the favorite in the best picture race (no one was yet even thinking about holding space for “Wicked”).
But we’re now right back where we started in the fall with both math and our Projectionist columnist, Kyle Buchanan, predicting that “Anora” will emerge triumphant. It’s by no means a sure thing — last weekend’s big Screen Actors Guild Awards winner, the papal thriller “Conclave,” could play spoiler.
In the acting races, Demi Moore appears to be the one to beat after notching another win at the SAGs (though Buchanan says not to count out Fernanda Torres, who delivers a tour de force performance in the quiet Brazilian drama “I’m Still Here”).
But could Adrien Brody, who plays a Jewish architect who survives the Holocaust in “The Brutalist,” be in for an upset from the 29-year-old Timothée Chalamet, who has embarked on a decidedly unconventional — and very online — Oscar campaign for his lead role in the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown”?
Here’s everything you need to know.
What time does the show start and where can I watch?
This year’s show is again one for the early birds: The ceremony is set to begin at 7 p.m. Eastern, 4 p.m. Pacific, at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.
On TV, ABC is the official broadcaster. Online, you can watch the show live on the ABC app, which is free to download, or at abc.com, though you’ll need to sign in using the credentials from your cable provider. There are also a number of live TV streaming services that offer access to ABC, including Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV and FuboTV, which all require subscriptions.
The show will also air live on Hulu, making it the first time cord cutters can watch the show live on a streaming service.
Can people outside the United States watch?
The show will air live across the world. In Canada, it will be shown on CTV; in Britain, it will be on ITV. The Oscars website has a country-by-country list of the networks that will be airing the ceremony.
Is there a red carpet?
Of course — and this year it will, once more, actually be red. (Check out our profile of the man who’s made the 50,000-square-foot rug for the academy for the past 28 years, Steve Olive.)
An official 30-minute red carpet preshow hosted by Julianne Hough and Jesse Palmer will begin at 6:30 p.m. Eastern on ABC and Hulu, which will lead straight into the live ceremony. If you’re in the market for even earlier coverage, the unofficial E! Oscars red carpet show hosted by “Access Hollywood”’s Zuri Hall will begin at 4 p.m. Eastern.
We’ll be keeping a special eye out for Jeremy Strong, who is nominated for his performance as the ruthless lawyer Roy Cohn in the Donald Trump biopic “The Apprentice.” His “Gumby”– and Kermit-inspired looks at the Golden Globes and the SAGs have been highlights this awards season.
Who is hosting?
The Emmy-winning comedian, podcaster and traveler Conan O’Brien is hosting the Academy Awards for the first time.
Since he accepted the job late last year, O’Brien, 61, has had an emotionally taxing few months. In December, his parents, who were in their 90s, died three days apart. Not long after, just as he was settling back in Los Angeles to work on the Oscars, the fires began, and his home was evacuated. He is still living in a hotel.
Though he has hosted the Emmys twice, most recently in 2006, he has never attended the Oscars. “This was the only way I could get invited,” he joked to our reporter.
Who is presenting?
As always, the academy has lined up a bevy of A-listers. Last year’s acting winners — Cillian Murphy (actor), Emma Stone (actress), Robert Downey Jr. (supporting actor) and Da’Vine Joy Randolph (supporting actress) — will be in the lineup.
The stars joining them will include Halle Berry, Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Lily Rose-Depp, Harrison Ford, Gal Gadot, Andrew Garfield, Whoopi Goldberg, Selena Gomez, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Poehler, Zoe Saldaña, Ben Stiller, Oprah Winfrey, Bowen Yang and Rachel Zegler. Nick Offerman will serve as the ceremony’s announcer.
Who will be performing?
In a break from tradition, the original song nominees will not be performed this year. But skipping music in a year when “Wicked” is nominated? That would be criminal. (The songs from the box-office hit weren’t eligible in the category because, since they’re from the Broadway musical, they aren’t original to the film.)
The show will open with a performance by the stars of “Wicked,” Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. Also set to perform are Doja Cat, Lisa of Blackpink, Queen Latifah and Raye.
How have the wildfires affected the show?
Organizers have said the ceremony will spotlight first responders, after a decidedly less debonair awards cycle in which the academy canceled its annual nominees luncheon.
Many actors, musicians and others in Hollywood, including Billy Crystal and Mel Gibson, were among the thousands of Angelenos whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the fires.
“I know so many people who lost their homes,” O’Brien told The Associated Press. “So we want to make sure that that show reflects what’s happening and that we put a light on the right people in the right way.”
Who is nominated?
The Spanish-language narco-musical “Emilia Pérez” leads the pack with 13 nominations, followed by Brady Corbet’s epic drama “The Brutalist” and the gravity-defying musical “Wicked” with 10 each.
“A Complete Unknown,” the Bob Dylan biopic; and “Conclave,” Edward Berger’s Ralph-Fiennes-led drama about a group of cardinals gathered in the Vatican to choose a new pope, each picked up eight.
In the acting races, Adrien Brody (“The Brutalist”), Timothée Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”), Colman Domingo (“Sing Sing”), Ralph Fiennes (“Conclave”) and Sebastian Stan (“The Apprentice”) will square off for best actor. Cynthia Erivo (“Wicked”), Karla Sofía Gascón (“Emilia Pérez”), Mikey Madison (“Anora”), Demi Moore (“The Substance”) and Fernanda Torres (“I’m Still Here”) will duke it out for best actress.
How can I watch the nominated films?
Of the 10 best picture nominees — “Anora,” “The Brutalist,” “A Complete Unknown,” “Conclave,” “Dune: Part 2,” “Emilia Pérez,” “I’m Still Here,” “Nickel Boys,” “The Substance,” and “Wicked” — only “I’m Still Here” is still exclusively in theaters.
The others are available to either stream or rent on various platforms.
Who is going to win?
First things first: Best picture. It’s still “Anora”’s race to lose, despite “Conclave”’s win at the SAGs last weekend. The film has picked up top prizes from the producers, directors and writers guilds, and its director, Sean Baker, is the favorite in the director and original screenplay categories, traditional accouterments of the night’s top winner.
But almost every surprise Oscar best picture winner — looking at you, “Shakespeare in Love” (1999), “Crash” (2006), “Spotlight” (2016), “Parasite” (2020) and “CODA” (2022) — has first won best ensemble at the SAGs.
In best actress, Fernanda Torres (“I’m Still Here”) is a wild card in a race in which Demi Moore has been the front-runner ever since her viral, barnburning comeback speech at the Golden Globes.
Adrien Brody (“The Brutalist”) remains the favorite in best actor: Though Timothée Chalamet (“A Complete Unknown”) upset him at the SAGs, becoming the youngest actor to ever win the guild’s honor for lead actor at 29, the academy remains reluctant to recognize young men. No one under 30 has ever won the best actor Oscar except for Brody himself, who notched his win for “The Pianist” at age 29.
Look for Kieran Culkin (“A Real Pain”), who has won at every major award show this season, to take home best supporting actor. (His free-associating acceptance speeches have been almost as fun as Moore’s zingers.)
And in supporting actress, despite the controversy around “Emilia Pérez,” Zoe Saldaña remains the favorite for her role as a savvy lawyer.
What’s the controversy around ‘Emilia Pérez’?
Thankfully, our incredibly online reporter set himself the task of explaining it for you.
In a nutshell: Old offensive social media posts by one of its stars, Karla Sofía Gascón, as well as criticism from the L.G.B.T.Q. community that the film is a step backward for transgender representation.
Will there be animals?
This year may lack a Jenny the donkey (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) or a Messi the Border collie (“Anatomy of a Fall”), but with Demi Moore in the house, there’s a good chance she’ll bring her dog, Pilaf.
The pint-size Chihuahua has a strong track record of party and gala attendance, even sitting through a performance of “Sunset Boulevard” on Broadway in the fall.
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