NEW YORK — What do vampires from the 1930s South, an ambitious ping-pong player, an undercover alien and an ex-revolutionary all have in common?
They’re all vying for Hollywood’s highest honor.
After nailing the gig as host last year, Conan O’Brien is back for the 98th Academy Awards. From a broadcast perspective, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Bill Kramer envisions something huge for this year’s Oscars.
“Big performances, big popcorn movies, lot of international representation. All I will say is we have a lot of star power on our stage this year,” Kramer said.
Star power indeed — last year’s winners, including Adrien Brody, Kieran Culkin, Mikey Madison and Zoe Saldana will be presenters.
As for the races themselves, one category you should not expect any surprises in is Best Actress. All eyes are on Jessie Buckley for her role in “Hamnet.”
In the race for Best Actor, front runners have emerged: Michael B. Jordan most recently, and in the beginning, it was Timothee Chalamet.
“Half this Oscar predicting, becoming an Oscar winner, half of it is performance-based. The other half is prom king and queen. Ethan Hawke is the prom king,” said Clayton Davis, senior awards editor at Variety.
Meanwhile, the supporting categories this year are simply too close to call. Will it be Amy Madigan for “Weapons,” or Teyana Taylor for “One Battle After Another”?
“We’re not supposed to know all the answers, and we’re gonna walk in all scratching our head,” Davis said.
“When you look at Supporting Actress, we’ve had different winners at every award show. That’s only happened one other time in recent memory.”
And in the race for Best Supporting Actor, Fandango Managing Editor Erik Davis says there’s a few names he’s looking out for.
“This is a big one. This is Stellan Skarsgard’s first-ever Oscar nomination. And then I look at Delroy Lindo, 73 years old, first-ever Oscar nomination. So, this category, really, those guys are very interesting,” he said.
As for the biggest award of the night, it’s shaping up to be a face-off between “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another.” However, Erik Davis says a totally different outcome could also happen.
“There is a world where both of those films cancel each other out and a film like ‘Hamnet’ takes it,” he said.
All of it setting the stage for an unforgettable evening of movies, moments and surprises.
Don’t miss Hollywood’s biggest night: The Oscars on ABC!
Our live Oscar pre-show, “On The Red Carpet at the Oscars,” begins at 3:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. PT and will feature live interviews with the nominees, red carpet fashion analysis and more!
Watch the 98th Academy Awards, hosted by Conan O’Brien, on March 15 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on ABC and Hulu, followed by “The Bachelorette: Before the First Rose.”
Check your local listings or stream on Hulu and OnTheRedCarpet.com.
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