Oscar 2018 predictions: Who will win at Hollywood's most illustrious awards night?

Mumbai: Hollywood's most prestigious awards, the Oscars, turns 90 this year. The recent scandals and ongoing discussions about how to curb out corruption and inequality are sure to be a point of focus at Monday's big event. In the past 12 months, accusations against Hollywood heavyweights including Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Brian Singer, have inspired the #MeToo movement in the industry. After an eventful 2017, the industry has surely gone through a tremendous change.

The precursory events such as the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards and the BAFTAs have certainly raised the bar of expectations high from this year's wonderful nominees. Guillermo del Toro’s 'The Shape of Water' leads the pack with 13 nominations, while Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk and Martin McDonagh's 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' are not far behind, with eight and seven nominations, respectively. It is going to be very exciting to see what happens at the 2018 Oscars after returning host Jimmy Kimmel's monologue.

Here are our 2018 Oscar predictions:

Best Picture (Nominees):

“Call Me by Your Name”
“Darkest Hour”
“Dunkirk”
“Get Out”
“Lady Bird”
“Phantom Thread”
“The Post”
“The Shape of Water”
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

Who should win: Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk.

Best Picture is one of the most unpredictable categories. While Guillermo del Toro’s 'The Shape of Water' leads the pack with 13 nominations, 'Get Out' is considered as the safest pick. If not 'Dunkirk', then director Martin McDonagh's black comedy drama 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' could gain favour. However, Dunkirk will mostly be benefited from the preferential ballot. Read Dunkirk review here.

Director (Nominees):

“Dunkirk,” Christopher Nolan
“Get Out,” Jordan Peele
“Lady Bird,” Greta Gerwig
“Phantom Thread,” Paul Thomas Anderson
“The Shape of Water,” Guillermo del Toro

Who should win: Guillermo del Toro.

Guillermo del Toro should rightfully take the stage Oscar night for his stunning work on 'The Shape of Water'. Although, if there’s a shocker, it’s possible Jordan Peele (Get Out) could surprise.

Lead Actor (Nominees):

Timothée Chalamet, “Call Me by Your Name”
Daniel Day-Lewis, “Phantom Thread”
Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”
Gary Oldman, “Darkest Hour”
Denzel Washington, “Roman J. Israel, Esq.”

Who should win: Gary Oldman.

This has to be the easiest and safest race to predict of the night. Gary Oldman has given a stunning performance, and The Academy is sure to acknowledge his work. After previous two Academy Awards nominations, Oldman will easily take home his first ever Oscar this year. Read our review here.

Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill in 'Darkest Hour'.

Supporting Actor (Nominees):

Willem Dafoe, “The Florida Project”
Woody Harrelson, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
Richard Jenkins, “The Shape of Water”
Christopher Plummer, “All the Money in the World”
Sam Rockwell, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

Who should win: Sam Rockwell.

After winning Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) - 'Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture' - Sam Rockwell seems to be on a path to winning his first Oscar for his layered, complex role in 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri'. Things might shift only to let Willem Dafoe score that trophy over Rockwell for his brilliant work in 'The Florida Project'. Read review here.

Lead Actress (Nominees):
Sally Hawkins, "The Shape of Water"
Frances McDormand, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Margot Robbie, "I, Tonya"
Saoirse Ronan, "Lady Bird"
Meryl Streep, "The Post"

Who should win: Frances McDormand.

No doubts here. Hope McDormand has her acceptance speech ready.

Sam Rockwell and Frances McDormand in the still from 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri'.

Supporting Actress (Nominees):

Mary J. Blige, "Mudbound"
Allison Janney, "I, Tonya"
Lesley Manville, "Phantom Thread"
Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Octavia Spencer, "The Shape of Water"

Veteran actor Allison Janney nominated for playing a complicated and never-loving mother to a wilful daughter in 'I, Tonya'. Janney has run away with every possible award so far, building up the kind of traction that’s difficult to lose! We would be happy to see her with an Oscar.

Adapted Screenplay  (Nominees):

“Call Me by Your Name,” James Ivory
“The Disaster Artist,” Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
“Logan,” Scott Frank & James Mangold and Michael Green
“Molly’s Game,” Aaron Sorkin
“Mudbound,” Virgil Williams and Dee Rees

Who should win: James Ivory (Call Me by Your Name).

Original Screenplay (Nominees):

“The Big Sick,” Emily V. Gordon & Kumail Nanjiani
“Get Out,” Jordan Peele
“Lady Bird,” Greta Gerwig
“The Shape of Water,” Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” Martin McDonagh

Who should win: Jordan Peele (Get Out)

Animated Feature (Nominees):

“The Boss Baby,” Tom McGrath, Ramsey Ann Naito
“The Breadwinner,” Nora Twomey, Anthony Leo
“Coco,” Lee Unkrich, Darla K. Anderson
“Ferdinand,” Carlos Saldanha
“Loving Vincent,” Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman, Sean Bobbitt, Ivan Mactaggart, Hugh Welchman

Who should win: Coco.

Cinematography (Nominees):

“Blade Runner 2049,” Roger Deakins
“Darkest Hour,” Bruno Delbonnel
“Dunkirk,” Hoyte van Hoytema
“Mudbound,” Rachel Morrison
“The Shape of Water,” Dan Laustsen

Who should win: Roger Deakins.

Because it's overdue and much, much deserved.

Original Score (Nominees):

“Dunkirk,” Hans Zimmer
“Phantom Thread,” Jonny Greenwood
“The Shape of Water,” Alexandre Desplat
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” John Williams
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” Carter Burwell

Who should win: Alexandre Desplat (The Shape of Water).

Original Song (Nominees):

“Mighty River” from “Mudbound,” Mary J. Blige
“Mystery of Love” from “Call Me by Your Name,” Sufjan Stevens
“Remember Me” from “Coco,” Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez
“Stand Up for Something” from “Marshall,” Diane Warren, Common
“This Is Me” from “The Greatest Showman,” Benj Pasek, Justin Paul

Who should win: "This Is Me” from 'The Greatest Showman'.

A still from 'This is Me' song.

Film Editing (Nominees):

“Baby Driver,” Jonathan Amos, Paul Machliss
“Dunkirk,” Lee Smith
“I, Tonya,” Tatiana S. Riegel
“The Shape of Water,” Sidney Wolinsky
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” Jon Gregory

Who should win: Jonathan Amos, Paul Machliss (Baby Driver)

Edgar Wright’s team did a phenomenal job on this one.

Production Design (Nominees):

“Beauty and the Beast,” Sarah Greenwood; Katie Spencer
“Blade Runner 2049,” Dennis Gassner, Alessandra Querzola
“Darkest Hour,” Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
“Dunkirk,” Nathan Crowley, Gary Fettis
“The Shape of Water,” Paul D. Austerberry, Jeffrey A. Melvin, Shane Vieau

Who should win: Paul D. Austerberry, Jeffrey A. Melvin, Shane Vieau (The Shape of Water).

A still from 'The Shape of Water'.

Visual Effects (Nominees):

“Blade Runner 2049,” John Nelson, Paul Lambert, Richard R. Hoover, Gerd Nefzer
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Jonathan Fawkner, Dan Sudick
“Kong: Skull Island,” Stephen Rosenbaum, Jeff White, Scott Benza, Mike Meinardus
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi,”  Ben Morris, Mike Mulholland, Chris Corbould, Neal Scanlan
“War for the Planet of the Apes,” Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, Daniel Barrett, Joel Whist

Who should win: War for the Planet of the Apes.

Makeup and Hair:

“Darkest Hour,” Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Malinowski, Lucy Sibbick
“Victoria and Abdul,” Daniel Phillips and Lou Sheppard
“Wonder,” Arjen Tuiten

Who should win: Darkest Hour.

Costume Design (Nominees):

“Beauty and the Beast,” Jacqueline Durran
“Darkest Hour,” Jacqueline Durran
“Phantom Thread,” Mark Bridges
“The Shape of Water,” Luis Sequeira
“Victoria and Abdul,” Consolata Boyle

Who should win: Mark Bridges (Phantom Thread).

The Oscar ceremony will be hosted at the Dolby Theatre, Hollywood and Highland Centre in Los Angeles, USA on March 4.  The Oscars will be broadcast live at 5.30 am in India on March 5. Star Movies, Star Movies HD and Star Movies Premiere HD will air the show and Hotstar will stream it live online.

See you at the movies!