Anna Cordaiy, leading the Entertainment and Features at Today, Today Extra, and Weekend Today, shares her predictions for this evening’s event.

As we reach the climax of the awards season with the Oscars, I find myself torn between my personal favorites and those I anticipate will actually triumph.

In recent times, the outcomes have been quite predictable.

Back in 2023, it was evident that Everything Everywhere All At Once would dominate the ceremony, and it did just that. Similarly, everyone foresaw Brendan Fraser’s victory for Best Actor thanks to his remarkable performance in The Whale.

When the 2024 nominations were announced, it was almost a foregone conclusion that Robert Downey Jr, Cillian Murphy, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Emma Stone would clinch the coveted awards.

Last year also followed a predictable pattern, with Anora being the frontrunner for Best Picture and Best Actress, and The Brutalist seemed set to earn Adrien Brody his second Oscar.

Things don’t seem as simple this year.

One thing is for certain. The night will be dominated by two films; Ryan Coogler’s Sinners (16 nominations) and Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another (13 nominations).

How those awards are divided up is where it gets complicated and interesting.

The Academy is well known for not awarding horror films with big honours, but the fact that Sinners has broken the record for the most Oscar nominations of all time has put it in good stead to take home at least a few of those 16 possible awards.

For Best Supporting Actor, sadly, I don’t think Jacob Elordi is taking home his first Oscar for Frankenstein. That said, Guilermo Del Toro’s film will surely pick up Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling and Best Production Design.

This year, who will win feels split between Sean Penn and Stellan Skarsgard, the latter of which I hope is the one that ends up on that stage delivering his acceptance speech. Sean Penn has notably refused to campaign but has still picked up a couple of wins so far this season.

More predictions to follow as the event continues – it’s going to be an interesting evening.