With the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards already handed out, the 2026 award season is now in full swing.
Coming up is the biggest prize of all: the 98th Academy Awards on March 15th.
But where do you even begin if you want to watch the movies that are sure to get some award buzz? From what to watch to where to watch, consider this your guide to all things movies this awards season.
Sinners
There’s no doubt that Sinners will snag a Best Picture nomination at this year’s Oscars. Ryan Coogler’s vampire thriller is at the top of most prediction lists, and even the predicted winner for Variety.
Set in the Jim Crow South, Sinners subverts expectations of the horror genre. Coogler delivers a Frankenstein of genres. Yes there are vampires, but Sinners is also a period piece, a social commentary, a family drama, a romance, and even a bit of a musical. It’s refreshingly unique, and as such has been stirring up buzz throughout the award season.
At the Critics Choice Awards, Sinners made history by being the first film to win the Best Casting Award. A well deserved win, as the incredible cast brings so much life to the film.
It received nominations for Best Picture, Best Director (Ryan Coogler), Best Supporting Actress (Wunmi Mosaku), Best Actor (Michael B. Jordan), Best Cinematographer (Autumn Durald Arkapaw), Best Costume Design (Ruth E. Carter), and a slew of other categories. The film also picked up wins for Best Score, Best Screenplay, and Best Young Actor. It received similar nominations at the SAG awards, which will be handed out on March 1st.
Over at the Golden Globes, the movie underperformed winning only Best Score and Cinematic Box Office Achievement.
Despite this Sinners is still expected to receive lots of nominations at the Academy Awards. Here are the predicted nominations.
- Best Actor
- Best Casting
- Best Cinematography
- Best Costume Design
- Best Director
- Best Editing
- Best Original Score
- Best Original Screenplay
- Best Picture
- Best Production Design
- Best Song
- Best Sound
- Best Supporting Actress
- Best Visual Effects
It’s definitely quite the list, but if you’re placing bets Best Score, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Cinematography are safe options. It’ll also probably repeat it’s historic win at the Critics Choice Awards, by winning the first over Best Casting Oscar. And if you’re feeling hopeful, betting on it winning Best Picture might not be a total shot in the dark.
Where to Watch: HBO MAX, Amazon Prime Video
One Battle After Another
Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, has been sweeping this awards season. It won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay at the Critics Choice Awards and the Golden Globes, with an extra win for Teyana Taylor as Best Supporting Actress.
The film follows Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio) as he embarks on a journey to find his daughter (Chase Infiniti) after an old enemy returns. With critics describing it as a “cinematic feast” and a “sensational adaptation” it’s certainly a film that’s been widely loved by audiences and critics alike. But how much does that matter in the grand scheme of the Oscars?
Well, its win for Best Picture-Musical or Comedy at Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards is definitely an indicator that it might be receiving a certain golden statue soon. However, according to The Ringer one of the best predictors for Best Picture are the Producer Guild of America Awards (PGA), having only missed the mark seven times in the last 25 years. With the PGA Awards premiering on February 28th, it will be a while before we get a solid prediction of the Best Picture race, but One Battle After Another is still a top contender. Here are the other categories it’s sure to receive recognition for.
- Best Adapted Screenplay
- Best Actor
- Best Actress
- Best Casting
- Best Cinematography
- Best Costume Design
- Best Director
- Best Film Editing
- Best Original Score
- Best Picture
- Best Sound
- Best Supporting Actor
- Best Supporting Actress
The best categories to put your money on would probably be Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Director, and although it has some tough competition, Best Picture is a pretty safe bet.
Where to Watch: HBO MAX
Hamnet
The other movie that might give One Battle After Another a run for its money in the Best Picture category is Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet. Based on the novel by Maggie O’Farrell, Hamnet follows the grief the Shakespeare family goes through and how this pain ultimately inspired one of the most famous plays of all time, Hamlet.
Hamnet received nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Score, among others, at the Critics Choice Awards. However, Jessie Buckley was the only one to bring it home, winning for Best Actress. The Golden Globes fared a bit differently, with Hamnet winning Best Picture – Drama, as well.
Although it beat out Sinners at the Golden Globes, can Hamnet take the win from One Battle After Another at the Oscars? It would be surprising, but definitely not impossible. However, here are the other categories it’ll definitely get nominated for.
- Best Adapted Screenplay
- Best Actress
- Best Cinematography
- Best Costume Design
- Best Director
- Best Original Score
- Best Picture
- Best Production Design
- Best Supporting Actor
While Hamnet certainly deserves the nominations, the only one it’ll probably receive is, a well deserved win, for Jessie Buckely, who’s been sweeping the entire awards season.
Where to Watch: Currently only in Theaters
Marty Supreme
Timothee Chalamet is vying for an Oscar win, getting close last year with his performance in A Complete Unknown. But will 2026 finally be his year?
After many nominations at both the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards, Josh Safdie’s film Marty Supreme, which follows an ambitious ping pong player, only got one win, which was Chalamet at the Golden Globes for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy.
However, famously the Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy rarely ever wins the Oscar too. The last time it happened was when Jamie Foxx won both awards for his performance in Ray. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. While it’s not the front runner in a lot of categories it’ll definitely snag these nominations.
- Best Actor
- Best Casting
- Best Editing
- Best Original Screenplay
- Best Picture
- Best Production Design
Where to Watch: Currently only in Theaters
Honorable Mentions
While One Battle After Another, Sinners, and Hamnet are the frontrunners for Best Picture there are still a lot of great films who will be receiving a nomination as well. Some possible nominees are…
- Frankenstein (Directed by Guillermo del Toro)
- Bugonia (Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos)
- Train Dreams (Directed by Clint Bentley)
- Sentimental Value (Directed by Joachim Trier)
- The Secret Agent (Directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho)
Those last two are also in a tight race for Best International Feature Film. The Secret Agent snagged the Critics Choice and the Golden Globe, but Stellan Skarsgård is a favorite to win for this supporting role in Sentimental Value. It will be a tight race for sure.
However, going back to the Best Picture list, typically a maximum of ten films are nominated. Other contenders are No Other Choice, Blue Moon, F1, Jay Kelley, and Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Some other movies to keep an eye out for are Frankenstein who will definitely pick up awards for Makeup, Costumes, and maybe Production Design. Additionally, after her win at the Critics Choice Awards, Amy Madigan’s performance in Weapons might boost her chances in the Oscars race.
While some categories might be tighter than others, this awards season is full of great cinema and is sure to celebrate some very talented filmmakers on Hollywood’s biggest stage.
