It’s the starriest night in Hollywood when the world’s most famous actors gather to celebrate the best movies and performances of the previous year.
A-list celebrities including Demi Moore, Timothee Chalamet, Ariana Grande, Zoe Saldana and Kieran Culkin are set to attend this year’s Academy Awards.
The race has been utterly chaotic and unpredictable so far – so what can we expect from the night itself?
When and where?
The 97th Academy Awards will be held today at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
The red carpet will begin at 3.30pm Eastern time, which is 8.30pm UK time, followed by the ceremony at 7pm Eastern time, which is midnight in the UK. It will be a late night for the UK’s movie lovers, but worth staying up to see who takes home a gong on the night.
Traditionally the last awards ceremony of awards season, this year’s Oscar ceremony follows the devastating wildfires which tore through Los Angeles in early January.
The Academy twice extended their voting period, postponing the announcement of nominations, but remained steadfast on the 2 March ceremony, arguing that the show must go on as a symbol of resilience.
Accordingly, this year’s Oscar theme is “celebration of connection”, and will aim to unite the global film community following scenes of destruction so close to home.
Conan O’Brien. Pic: AP
Who’s hosting?
Comedian and late-night show host Conan O’Brien will present for the first time.
Previous stints writing for The Simpsons and Saturday Night Live stand him in good stead, and while he’s unlikely to roast any of the esteemed A-listers in attendance, his irreverential style offers scope for some potential off-the-cuff fun.
He follows in the footsteps of Jimmy Kimmel, three-for-one trio Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes and several years of hostless Oscar ceremonies.
Cynthia Erivo (L) and Ariana Grande at the Golden Globes. Pic: AP
Who’s performing?
Usually, the best original song nominees perform on the night – but not this year.
The Academy have said they wanted to “move away from live performances”, and instead focus on songwriters.
Some wonder if last year’s Kenergy-filled I’m Just Ken performance – fronted by Ryan Gosling, and so good it literally broke best actress winner Emma Stone‘s dress – was simply impossible to follow.
Others have suggested criticism around the clunkiness of some Emilia Perez lyrics (two of the narco-musical’s numbers have made it into the category) may have led to a performance re-think.
Plus, the songs from Wicked weren’t even eligible for best song because they were inherited from the Broadway musical and so not original to the movie.
Flying the flag for the UK, Raye. Pic: AP
But while there’s a little confusion around the choice, there’s one thing everyone agrees on: It would be criminal to have Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in the house and not having them belt out a number – so they’re scheduled to sing on the night.
Other performances include singer Doja Cat, Blackpink and White Lotus star Lisa, rapper Queen Latifah and British singer Raye.
There will also be a musical tribute to late producer and composer Quincy Jones and a special appearance by the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
(R-L): Cillian Murphy, Emma Stone, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Robert Downey Jr. Pic: Reuters
What awards are given out?
There are 23 categories to award during the three-hour ceremony (this will go up to 24 next year when a casting category is added).
No wonder winners are encouraged to keep to 45 seconds in their acceptance speeches, after which point music is played to subtly encourage them off-stage.
Here’s the full list of nominations.
Rachel Zegler will present an award. Pic: Retuters
Who’s presenting?
The latest stars to be announced as presenters include Dave Bautista, Harrison Ford, Gal Gadot, Andrew Garfield, Samuel L Jackson, Margaret Qualley, Alba Rohrwacher, Zoe Saldana and Rachel Zegler.
Last year’s four best actor category winners Robert Downey Jr, Cillian Murphy, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Emma Stone will return to hand out awards.
Previously announced presenters include Joe Alwyn, Halle Berry, Sterling K Brown, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Ana de Armas, Lily-Rose Depp, Elle Fanning, Whoopi Goldberg, Selena Gomez, Goldie Hawn, Scarlett Johansson, John Lithgow, Connie Nielsen, Amy Poehler, June Squibb, Ben Stiller, Oprah Winfrey and Bowen Yang.
Pic: Neon
Who do we reckon will win?
It’s one of the most hotly contested competitions in years, and clear front-runners few and far between.
Many feel the best supporting actor categories are the closest to being locked in, with Kieran Culkin the favourite to take best supporting actor and Zoe Saldana the most likely Emilia Perez star to take home a gong following the movie’s self-destructing campaign.
Best actor is largely seen as a fight between Adrien Brody for The Brutalist (it would be his second Oscar win) and Ralph Fiennes for his turn as an affable cardinal in Conclave.
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Best actress is expected to be a battle between Demi Moore for The Substance and Mikey Madison for Anora.
Best director could well be handed to Anora’s Sean Baker or The Brutalist’s Brady Corbet, while the most prestigious gong of the night – best picture – is expected to go to Anora or Conclave.
If you want to remind yourself of the 10 movies up for best picture, and where to watch them, take a read here.
Fernanda Torres stars in I’m Still Here. Pic: Altitude
Any surprises on the cards?
In best actor, Timothee Chalamet, in his ongoing pursuit for greatness, could swoop in and take the prize over Brody and Fiennes. At 29 he’d become the youngest ever winner.
In best actress, Brazilian star Fernanda Torres – despite being previously pretty much unknown in the US – has become the name on everyone’s lips for her lead role in I’m Still Here.
With many voters not watching the film until late in the day, it’s likely to have been fresh in their minds come voting week, and as a word-of-mouth hit might have swayed voters in their final hours.
If Torres were to win, she’d achieve a feat that evaded her mother, actress Fernanda Montenegro, who was up for the prize in 1999. Montenegro was pipped to the post by Gwyneth Paltrow, who famously sobbed her way through her emotional acceptance speech.
I’m Still Here could cause an upset in best picture too. Up for best international feature, best actress and best picture, if it took the latter prize – traditionally the biggest win of the night – it would be a Parasite-like surprise coup for the foreign language film, and only the second time a non-English language film has ever taken the gong following Bong Joon-ho’s shock win.
Sky News will be liveblogging the whole night – from red carpet arrivals through to the ceremony – and will follow up with a hosted livestream from the Vanity Fair and Sir Elton John after-party red carpets, catching the Oscar-winners as they party the night away.
