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The Q. and A.\u2019s and cocktail parties are a wrap. The votes have been cast. And on Tuesday, we\u2019ll find out which movies and artists will have a chance at Academy Awards when the Oscar nominations are announced.<\/p>\n
It was an unusually strong year for films, meaning that members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences<\/a> had some hard choices to make by the time voting closed last week. As I have written throughout this awards season, this year, there are simply more good movies and great performances than there are awards to honor them. When I came up with predictions<\/a>, I was tied up in knots trying to narrow down the list. But that also means I have some ideas about the names and titles Zazie Beetz and Jack Quaid will announce when they reveal the nominees at 8:30 a.m. on ABC and Oscars.com<\/a>. Here\u2019s what to expect:<\/p>\n \u201cBarbenheimer\u201d:<\/strong> The juggernaut made up of \u201cBarbie\u201d and \u201cOppenheimer\u201d dominated the box office last summer and has continued to be a force when it comes to prizes. Both films made strong showings last week when the acting<\/a>, directing<\/a> and producing<\/a> guilds released their nominations, and spots for both on the best picture list are all but guaranteed. For the biopic \u201cOppenheimer,\u201d Christopher Nolan is now the presumed front-runner for a directing nod, and it\u2019s a good bet you\u2019ll see Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. among the acting nominees. For \u201cBarbie,\u201d the picture is a little less clear in the individual categories. Director Greta Gerwig and star Margot Robbie are likely, but not assured, of spots while Ryan Gosling should be guaranteed a supporting-actor slot.<\/p>\n Double-Digit Nominations:<\/strong> I expect \u201cBarbie,\u201d \u201cOppenheimer\u201d and the historical-crime tale \u201cKillers of the Flower Moon\u201d to each score double-digit nominations. Thanks to the short lists<\/a> that the academy released last month, we already know that these movies have a good chance of competing in technical categories like score and sound. Still, there\u2019s one race where \u201cBarbie\u201d can\u2019t max out: Though three songs from the film \u2014 \u201cI\u2019m Just Ken,\u201d \u201cDance the Night\u201d and \u201cWhat Was I Made For?\u201d \u2014 all advanced to the short-list phase, only two songs per film are allowed in the final five.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Holdovers\u201d:<\/strong> Alexander Payne\u2019s dramedy about a history teacher, a cook and a student forced to stay behind at a boarding school over winter break has been coming on strong all awards season long. Paul Giamatti and Da\u2019Vine Joy Randolph, who play the adults on campus, have won key prizes already; look for their names to show up on Tuesday. And besides a likely best picture nod, there could be ones for directing and screenplay as well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Acting categories:<\/strong> The two Golden Globe winners Lily Gladstone (\u201cKillers of the Flower Moon\u201d) and Emma Stone (\u201cPoor Things\u201d) are strong locks for best actress; the question will be who fills out the rest of the category. Besides Giamatti and Murphy for best actor, expect Bradley Cooper (\u201cMaestro\u201d) and Jeffrey Wright (\u201cAmerican Fiction\u201d), leaving just one spot a question mark. In the supporting categories, Robert De Niro (\u201cKillers of the Flower Moon\u201d) will probably join Downey and Gosling, while Jodie Foster (\u201cNyad\u201d), Emily Blunt (\u201cOppenheimer\u201d) and Danielle Brooks (\u201cThe Color Purple\u201d) will probably line up next to Randolph.<\/p>\n The Best Picture Outlook:<\/strong> The safest bets are \u201cOppenheimer,\u201d \u201cBarbie\u201d and \u201cKillers of the Flower Moon.\u201d \u201cThe Holdovers\u201d and \u201cPoor Things\u201d are secure, too. I\u2019m projecting that \u201cPast Lives\u201d and \u201cAmerican Fiction\u201d will make it in as passion picks, and that there\u2019s room for the ambitious biopic \u201cMaestro.\u201d<\/p>\n Foreign-Language Surprises:<\/strong> For best picture, I\u2019m also betting that the French courtroom drama \u201cAnatomy of a Fall<\/a>\u201d and the German-language Holocaust drama \u201cThe Zone of Interest<\/a>\u201d will catch the attention of the academy\u2019s increasingly international voting body.<\/p>\n On the Bubble:<\/strong> \u201cThe Color Purple,\u201d \u201cMay December,\u201d \u201cSociety of the Snow\u201d and \u201cOrigin\u201d are also hoping for the big prize, but they\u2019ve been slow starters.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n