2026 Oscar predictions: Who will win in every category?

The 98th Academy Awards are shaping up to be one of the most competitive in recent memory.

While Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another has dominated the season, Ryan Coogler’s Sinners has surged late, making several categories too close to call.

Deadline’s Pete Hammond has laid out his final predictions for the 98th Academy Awards. Here’s the breakdown of nominees in each major category, with the predicted winners highlighted

Best Picture

Nominees:

• Train Dreams

• The Secret Agent

• One Battle After Another

• Sinners

• Hamnet

• Frankenstein

• F1: The Movie

• Sentimental Value

• Marty Supreme

• Bugonia

Predicted Winner: One Battle After Another

Best Actor In A Leading Role

Nominees:

• Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme)

• Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another)

• Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon)

• Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)

• Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)

Predicted Winner: Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)

Best Actress In A Leading ROle

Nominees:

• Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)

• Emma Stone (Bugonia)

• Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value)

• Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue)

• Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You)

Predicted Winner: Jessie Buckley (Hamnet)

Best Supporting Actor In A Supporting Role

Nominees:

• Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value)

• Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)

• Delroy Lindo (Sinners)

• Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein)

• Benicio Del Toro (One Battle After Another)

Predicted Winner: Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)

Best Supporting Actress In A Supporting Role

Nominees:

• Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value)

• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value)

• Amy Madigan (Weapons)

• Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners)

• Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another)

Predicted Winner: Amy Madigan (Weapons)

Best Directing

Nominees:

• Ryan Coogler (Sinners)

• Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value)

• Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)

• Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme)

• Chloé Zhao (Hamnet)

Predicted Winner: Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)

Best Original Screenplay

Nominees:

• Blue Moon

• It Was Just an Accident

• Marty Supreme

• Sentimental Value

• Sinners

Predicted Winner: Ryan Coogler (Sinners)

Best Adapted Screenplay

Nominees:

• Bugonia

• Train Dreams

• One Battle After Another

• Hamnet

• Frankenstein

Predicted Winner: Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)

Best Animated Feature

Nominees:

• Elio

• KPop Demon Hunters

• Little Amelie or the Character of Rain

• Zootopia 2

• Arco

Predicted Winner: KPop Demon Hunters

Best International Feature Film

Nominees:

• The Secret Agent

• The Voice of Hind Rajab

• Sirāt

• Sentimental Value

• It Was Just an Accident

Predicted Winner: Sentimental Value (Norway)

Best Documentary Feature Film

Nominees:

• The Alabama Solution

• The Perfect Neighbor

• Mr. Nobody Against Putin

• Cutting Through Rocks

• Come See Me in the Good Light

Predicted Winner: The Perfect Neighbor

Best Casting

Nominees:

• Sinners

• The Secret Agent

• One Battle After Another

• Marty Supreme

• Hamnet

Predicted Winner: Sinners

Best Cinematography

Nominees:

• Frankenstein

• Train Dreams

• Sinners

• One Battle After Another

• Marty Supreme

Predicted Winner: One Battle After Another

Best Film Editing

Nominees:

• Sinners

• Sentimental Value

• One Battle After Another

• Marty Supreme

• F1: The Movie

Predicted Winner: One Battle After Another

Best Production Design

Nominees:

• Sinners

• One Battle After Another

• Marty Supreme

• Hamnet

• Frankenstein

Predicted Winner: Frankenstein

Best Costume Design

Nominees:

• Avatar: Fire and Ash

• Sinners

• Marty Supreme

• Hamnet

• Frankenstein

Predicted Winner: Frankenstein

Best Original Music Score

Nominees:

• Sinners

• One Battle After Another

• Hamnet

• Frankenstein

• Bugonia

Predicted Winner: Sinners (Ludwig Göransson)

Best Original Song

Nominees:

• “Train Dreams” (Train Dreams)

• “Sweet Dreams of Joy” (Viva Verdi!)

• “I Lied to You” (Sinners)

• “Golden” (KPop Demon Hunters)

• “Dear Me” (Diane Warren: Relentless)

Predicted Winner: “Golden” (KPop Demon Hunters)

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

Nominees:

• The Ugly Stepsister

• The Smashing Machine

• Kokuho

• Sinners

• Frankenstein

Predicted Winner: Frankenstein

Best Sound

Nominees:

• F1: The Movie

• Sirāt

• Sinners

• One Battle After Another

• Frankenstein

Predicted Winner: F1: The Movie

Best Visual Effects

Nominees:

• Avatar: Fire and Ash

• Sinners

• The Lost Bus

• Jurassic World Rebirth

• F1: The Movie

Predicted Winner: Avatar: Fire and Ash

Best Documentary Short

Nominees:

• All the Empty Rooms

• Armed Only With a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud

• Children No More: “Were and Are Gone”

• The Devil Is Busy

• Perfectly a Strangeness

Predicted Winner: All the Empty Rooms

Best Live Action Short

Nominees:

• Butcher’s Stain

• Two People Exchanging Saliva

• Singers

• Jane Austen’s Period Drama

• A Friend of Dorothy

Predicted Winner: Two People Exchanging Saliva

Best Animated Short

Nominees:

• Butterfly

• The Three Sisters

• Retirement Plan

• The Girl Who Cried Pearls

• Forevergreen

Predicted Winner: Butterfly