Who Will Win 97th Academy Awards?

There have been years where the Oscars have been relatively easy to predict. It was pretty much a given last year, for example, that Oppenheimer was probably going to go home with Best Picture. That is not the case with the 2025 Oscars, as our predictions and preview will explain.

The 97th Academy Awards, hosted by Conan O’Brien, will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025. It’s a fascinating year because there doesn’t seem to be any single Oscars front-runner — a couple of easily predictable wins, maybe, but after the Karla Sofía Gascón controversy kind of tanked Emilia Pérez’s chances, it’s pretty much anyone’s game.

So, who’s winning Best Picture at the 2025 Oscars? Is Ariana Grande going to snag Best Supporting Actress? Who are they going to forget to include in the In Memoriam? We have some predictions to share ahead of the annual Oscars awards show, which will be available to stream live on Hulu at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT.

Best Picture

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• A Complete Unknown
• Conclave
• Dune: Part Two
• Emilia Pérez
• I’m Still Here
• Nickel Boys
• The Substance
• Wicked

It could easily be The Brutalist. Conclave could sneak in thanks to the ranked-choice voting. Man, oh man, I’d love it if it was The Substance. But Anora, given all the other accolades it’s been recently picking up at other award shows — it feels like this might be its moment. Anora, at least right now, seems like it has the best odds out of any other title at the 2025 Oscars.

Best Actress

• Cynthia Erivo, Wicked
• Karla Sofia Gascon, Emilia Pérez
• Mikey Madison, Anora
• Demi Moore, The Substance
• Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here

It’s pretty much between Demi Moore and Mikey Madison, here. They’re both great. I won’t be mad if either of them wins. Demi, though. Her journey and the road to the Oscars; like, it’s just such a cool story (and you know Oscar voters love a good story), and she’s giving such a vulnerable performance. I think she’s taking this one.

Best Actor

• Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
• Timothee Chalamet, A Complete Unknown
• Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
• Ralph Fiennes, Conclave
• Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

Out of all the acting categories, this is probably the hardest one to predict. Brody and Timothée Chalamet seem to be the two front-runners but, like, don’t completely count out Ralph Fiennes, either. Still, when push comes to shove, I’m predicting Brody. Chalamet is young, odds are he’ll be nominated again for something sooner rather than later. It’s Brody’s year. It’s his time. It’s his moment.

Best Supporting Actress

• Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown
• Ariana Grande, Wicked
• Felicity Jones, The Brutalist
• Isabella Rossellini, Conclave
• Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez

Saldaña was definitely a lock for Best Supporting Actress before all the Karla Sofía Gascón controversy happened. And while Ariana Grande definitely could sneak in there, I think it’s still going to go to Saldaña. That movie spoke to awards bodies in some way I’ll never understand, I think they’re still going to try to give it some Oscars wherever they can.

Best Supporting Actor

• Yura Borisov, Anora
• Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
• Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown
• Guy Pearce, The Brutalist
• Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice

This one is pretty much set in stone. I mean, maybe Guy Pearce has a bit of an outside shot, but, nah, it’s going to Kieran. And much deserved! Because he’s pretty remarkable in this.

Best Director

• Sean Baker, Anora
• Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
• James Mangold, A Complete Unknown
• Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez
• Coralie Fargeat, The Substance

While it would be incredible to see Coralie Fargeat take it, I think Best Director is between Brady Corbet and Sean Baker. Should Anora end up sweeping on Sunday, then, yeah, it might take Best Director, too. But Corbet has also been getting a lot of attention, and he does some great work in this, I think they’re going to give it to The Brutalist and Corbet’s grand ambition.

Best Original Screenplay

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• A Real Pain
• September 5
• The Substance

A tough one, a real tough one. The only 2025 Oscars nominee I’d say that has absolutely no shot is September 5; otherwise, it’s a bit of a coin toss. I’m sticking with A Real Pain because I do think that it may have the most “showy” writing out of all of them; that’s a very dialogue-driven movie, while the others aren’t quite as much.

Best Adapted Screenplay

• A Complete Unknown
• Conclave
• Emilia Pérez
• Nickel Boys
• Sing Sing

This one isn’t as tough as Original Screenplay, I don’t think, as I think Conclave has this one in the bag. I mean, Conclave has to win something, right? And the writing in that movie really stands out. This is where it’ll get its flowers, I’m pretty sure.

Best Cinematography

• The Brutalist
• Dune: Part Two
• Emilia Pérez
• Maria
• Nosferatu

I don’t want Emilia Pérez to win, but this is a pretty strongly nominated category otherwise. I think The Brutalist and Dune probably have the best shot; I’m going to give this one to The Brutalist and Best Visual Effects to Dune to split the difference.

Best Original Score

• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Emilia Pérez
• Wicked
• The Wild Robot

It should have been Challengers. We all agree that it should have been Challengers, right? It should have been Challengers. But, looking at what was nominated, I think this also goes to The Brutalist. Conclave could sneak in, maybe, but Daniel Blumberg will probably take this.

Best Original Song

• “El Mal,” Emilia Pérez
• “Mi Camino,” Emilia Pérez
• “The Journey,” The Six Triple Eight
• “Like a Bird,” Sing Sing
• “Never Too Late,” Elton John: Never Too Late

Again. Why awards bodies even bothered to give Emilia Pérez so many nominations in the first place, it’s beyond me. I don’t think the song “El Mal” is particularly good, either, but it’s been winning in pretty much every other awards show, so that means it’ll probably win here, too.

Best Editing

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Emilia Pérez
• Wicked

Editing is always tough. I’ve been told that whatever wins Best Editing is sometimes a sign of what’s going to win Best Picture. I’ve also seen that not happen before. But maybe, just maybe, it will be one of those years where it does line up that way. I’m going with Anora.

Best Production Design

• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Dune: Part Two
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

There’s no way that Wicked goes home totally empty-handed, which makes me think it’s going to take a bunch of the below-the-line awards. All the nominees have some really good production design, but I think the magic of Oz is going to win over a lot of voters.

Best Costume Design

• A Complete Unknown
• Conclave
• Gladiator II
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

It’d be cool if Nosferatu took it! Maybe don’t totally count out Gladiator II, either. Wicked, however, will probably end up taking this one. Again, that was a huge movie; it got nominated for a whole lot and they’re going to want to award it where they can. It’s Wicked.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

• A Different Man
• Emilia Pérez
• Nosferatu
• The Substance
• Wicked

This one, too. I mean, I’d love to see it go to A Different Man or The Substance, but A Different Man got pretty overlooked in every other category, and I’m just grateful The Substance wasn’t too weird for voters in the first place. Wicked also takes this one, easily, to earn another Academy Award during the 2025 Oscars.

Best Sound

• A Complete Unknown
• Dune: Part Two
• Emilia Pérez
• Wicked
• The Wild Robot

This one is tough. I think A Complete Unknown just because the category is Best Sound, and this is a movie that’s about music and has electrifying audio moments. But Emilia Pérez and Wicked are both musicals, too, while Dune: Part Two does some really technically impressive stuff. It’s a bit of a toss-up with this one, but I still think A Complete Unknown takes it.

Best Visual Effects

• Alien: Romulus
• Better Man
• Dune: Part Two
• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
• Wicked

It’s between Dune and Wicked, here, as the Academy almost always picks whatever movie was nominated for Best Picture in this category. And Dune — like, the whole worm-riding sequence. I just think that’s too damn impressive to ignore.

Best International Feature

• I’m Still Here
• The Girl With the Needle
• Emilia Pérez
• The Seed of the Sacred Fig
• Flow

I won’t completely rule out an I’m Still Here win since that also got nominated for Best Picture in the 2025 Oscars; however, Emilia Pérez received 13 nominations in total. As much as I’d like to, we can’t completely count it out or ignore it. Best International Feature seems like a logical win.

Best Animated Feature

• Flow
• Inside Out 2
• Memoir of a Snail
• The Wild Robot

I’d say it’s between Flow and The Wild Robot, and I’m giving it to Flow just because that’s been winning a whole lot of other awards. I’m not mad about it, either. It’s a good movie, and I think its style of animation and overall uniqueness will propel it to the finish line.

Best Live-Action Short Film

• A Lien
• Anuja
• I’m Not a Robot
• The Last Ranger
• The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

The short films are always the hardest to predict, largely because they’re also the hardest to seek out and watch before the ceremony. Anuja has buzz. It’s timely. I think it’s got a good shot. 

Best Animated Short Film

• Beautiful Men
• In the Shadow of the Cypress
• Magic Candies
• Wander to Wonder
• Yuck!

The 2025 Oscars is not one of those years where we just automatically assume the Pixar short is going to win. I’m going with Wander to Wonder for two reasons: it’s got a really unique concept, and it also won at the BAFTAs. Could be wrong on this one. Yet, Wander to Wonder gets my prediction.

Best Documentary Feature Film

• Black Box Diaries
• No Other Land
• Porcelain War
• Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
• Sugarcane

Usually, a front-runner does emerge in the Best Documentary Feature Film category in the lead-up to the Oscars. This year’s seems to be No Other Land. I won’t call it a complete lock because I’ve heard some good stuff about the other nominees, too, but I’d still bet on No Other Land.

Best Documentary Short Film

• Death by Numbers
• I Am Ready, Warden
• Incident
• Instruments of a Beating Heart
• The Only Girl in the Orchestra

There’s a lot of heavy and sad nominees in this category for the 2025 Oscars (as there seems to be every year); I Am Ready, Warden addresses some heavy stuff, it’s got a lot of people talking, and I’m thinking it’s going home with that Oscar.