As we near the 2022 Oscars / 94th Academy Awards, Mama’s Geeky gives you our final Oscar predictions after a very long awards season.
We’re nearing the end of a long and tumultuous 2021 awards season. The 94th Academy Awards will close it up this Sunday. Throughout the season, we’ve seen a clear front-runner, The Power of the Dog, dominate and lead Academy nominations with 12.
However, since Oscar nomination morning, a beloved underdog, CODA, has taken siege of the awards race. It not only won Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, but in recent weeks, Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures at the Producers Guild of America Awards, and the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
CODA is nominated for 3 Academy Awards – Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor for Troy Kotsur and is well-positioned to win all three categories. If it wins all three categories, it will be the seventh Best Picture to win every category for which it was nominated.
If CODA takes home Oscar gold for Best Picture, it will not only make history by making Apple the first streamer to win a best picture Oscar (sorry, Netflix, you tried) but being one of six films in Oscars 94-year history to win Best Picture without a corresponding Best Director or Best Film Editing nomination. Only Grand Hotel (1932) plus four other films — Wing (1927/28), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Argo (2012), and Green Book (2018) — managed to take home the Best Picture statue without a corresponding Best Director nom.
Troy Kotsur would make history on his own. Winning on Oscar night would make him the first deaf male actor and second deaf actor to win an Academy Award after his co-star, Marlee Matlin, took home the gold for Children of a Lesser God in 1987.
Final Oscar Predictions
I’m ready and excited to see how it’ll all play out. How right will I be at 11:30 P.M. Sunday? We’ll find out!
Here are my final predictions for the 94th Academy Awards:
Best Picture
Will Win: CODA
Should Win: Dune
Could Win: The Power of the Dog
Best Directing
Will/Could Win: Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog
Should Win: N/A
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Will Win: Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Could/Should Win: Kristen Stewart, Spencer
Best Actor in a Leading Role
Will/Should Win: Will Smith, King Richard
Could Win: Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Will/Could/Should Win: Ariana Debose: West Side Story
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Will/Could/Should Win: Troy Kotsur, CODA
Best Original Screenplay
Will Win: Belfast
Should Win: Licorice Pizza
Could Win: The Worst Person in the World
Best Adapted Screenplay
Will Win: CODA
Could Win: The Power of the Dog
Should Win: CODA
Best Cinematography
Will Win: Dune
Could/Should Win: The Power of the Dog
Best Film Editing
Will Win: King Richard
Could/Should Win: Dune
Best Animated Feature Film
Will Win: Encanto
Could/Should Win: The Mitchells vs. the Machines
Best Animated Short Film
Will /Should Win: Robin Robin
Could Win: The Windshield Wiper
Best Live-Action Short Film
Will/Should Win: The Long Goodbye
Could Win: Ala Kachuu: Take and Run
Best International Feature Film
Will/Should Win: Drive My Car
Could Win: The Worst Person in the World
Best Documentary Feature
Will/Should Win: Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Could/Should Win: Flee
Best Documentary Short Subject
Will/Should Win: The Queen of Basketball
Could Win: Three Songs For Benazir
Best Original Score
Will Win/Should Win: Dune
Could Win: The Power of the Dog
Best Original Song
Will/Should: “No Time To Die” – Billie Eilish
Could Win: “Be Alive”- Beyonce
Best Sound
Will/Could/Should Win: Dune
Best Costume Design
Will/Could/Should Win: Cruella
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Will Win: The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Could/Should Win: Cruella
Best Production Design
Will/Could/Should Win: Dune
Best Visual Effects
Will/Could/Should Win: Dune
David Gonzalez is the founder and chief film critic of Reel Talk Inc. and host of the Reel Chronicles podcast. As a Cuban American independent film critic, David has written fair and diverse criticism covering movies of all genres and spotlighting minority voices through Reel Talk for the past eight years.
David has covered and reviewed films for Tribeca, TIFF, NYFF, Sundance, and several other film festivals. He is a member of New York Film Critics Online (NYFCO) and the Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA).
As an avid film collector and awards watcher, David’s finger is always on the industry’s pulse. He informs and educates with knowledgeable and exciting content and has become a trusted resource for readers and listeners alike.
Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter and Instagram @reeltalkinc.