Oscars 2026: who will win, who should win, who should’ve been in the running?

Best picture

Will win: Sinners
Should win: The Secret Agent
Shoulda been a contender: The Mastermind

Best director

Will win: Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another
Should win: Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another
Shoulda been a contender: Kleber Mendonça Filho for The Secret Agent

Prime contender … Sinners. Photograph: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc./PA

Best actor

Will win: Michael B Jordan for Sinners
Should win: Timothée Chalamet for Marty Supreme
Shoulda been a contender: Josh O’Connor for The Mastermind

Best actress

Will win: Jessie Buckley for Hamnet
Should win: Jessie Buckley for Hamnet
Shoulda been a contender: Jennifer Lawrence for Die My Love

Praying for success … Jessie Buckley in Hamnet. Photograph: 2025 Focus Features LLC./PA

Best supporting actor

Will win: Delroy Lindo for Sinners
Should win: Delroy Lindo for Sinners
Shoulda been a contender: Russell Crowe for Nuremberg

Best supporting actress

Will win: Wunmi Mosaku for Sinners
Should win: Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another
Shoulda been a contender: Gwyneth Paltrow for Marty Supreme

Listening out for a win …Zootopia 2. Photograph: DIsney/AP

Best animated feature

Will win: Zootopia 2
Should win: Little Amélie
Shoulda been a contender: Fixed

Best adapted screenplay

Will win: One Battle After Another
Should win: One Battle After Another
Shoulda been a contender: Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight

Deserves to be celebrated … It Was Just an Accident. Photograph: AP

Best original screenplay

Will win: Sinners
Should win: It Was Just an Accident
Shoulda been a contender: Black Bag

Best documentary

Will win: Mr Nobody Against Putin
Should win: Mr Nobody Against Putin
Shoulda been a contender: Ocean With David Attenborough

Holding on to hope … Stellan Skarsgård and Elle Fanning in Sentimental Value. Photograph: Landmark Media/Alamy

Best international feature film

Will win: Sentimental Value
Should win: The Secret Agent
Shoulda been a contender: The Ice Tower

Best production design

Will win: Hamnet
Should win: Hamnet
Shoulda been a contender: Bugonia

Waiting for news … The Secret Agent. Photograph: Victor Juca/AP

Best cinematography

Will win: Train Dreams
Should win: Train Dreams
Shoulda been a contender: The Secret Agent

Best makeup and hair

Will win: Frankenstein
Should win: Frankenstein
Shoulda been a contender: Blue Moon

A monstrous oversight? … Oscar Isaac in Frankenstein. Photograph: Ken Woroner/Netflix

Best costume design

Will win: Sinners
Should win: Sinners
Shoulda been a contender: The Phoenician Scheme

Best editing

Will win: Sentimental Value
Should win: Sentimental Value
Shoulda been a contender: Die My Love