Catch Up on These 20 Movies as Awards Season Gets Underway

Loosely inspired by Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau, Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore face off as two women both obsessed with and horrified by each other. It will definitely get a Best Picture nom as well as a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Charles Melton, who plays the much younger husband of Moore’s character. Original Screenplay is also a lock nomination, but nominations for Director Todd Haynes or acting noms for Portman and Moore are possibilities as well.

"Barbie," an existential meditation and feminist manifesto based on the Mattel doll, is going to rack up both nominations and wins, guaranteed. It’s a shoo-in for nominations for Best Picture, Director for Greta Gerwing, acting nominations for Margot Robbie and America Ferrera, Adapted Screenplay, Production Design, Cinematography, Film Editing and Sound and Score. Ryan Gosling is the likely winner for Best Supporting Actor, and Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell will take the award for Best Song, one of three likely song nominations for the film. The film will also win in Costume Design. Makeup and Hairstyling nominations are also possible.

Expect "Oppenheimer," the story of the man behind the atomic bomb, to have the most wins of the season, including Best Picture and Director for Christopher Nolan. It is also the frontrunner for Film Editing, Sound and Score. Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt and Robert Downey Jr. will get acting nominations and the film will also get nominations for Adapted Screenplay, Production Design, Cinematography, Costume Design and Makeup and Hairstyling.

This French courtroom drama about a woman accused of her husband’s murder could lock in both Best Picture categories and Best International Feature. Original Screenplay nominations are also probable.

Based on the David Grann non-fiction book, this film about a series of murders of Osage members in 1920s Oklahoma is in the elite class of probable Best Picture nominations. Director Martin Scorsese will be nominated as well, while Lily Gladstone is a frontrunner for Best Actress. Robert DeNiro will snag acting nominations and the film will also get nominations in Adapted Screenplay, Production Design, Cinematography, Costume Design and Score.

Emma Stone stars as Bella, a woman resurrected from the dead who is a female version of Frankenstein's monster on a path of self-discovery. Stone will be nominated for Best Actress and Mark Ruffalo will likely nab Best Supporting Actor nominations. The dark comedy is also expected to get nominations for Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Costume Design, Film Editing and Makeup and Hairstyling. It is the current frontrunner for Production Design.

Will Bradley Cooper finally win a Best Actor prize for his portrayal of conductor/composer Leonard Bernstein after many nominations? He directed the film as well so he might also get noms for that. Also expect nominations for Best Picture, Best Actress for Carey Mulligan, Film Editing and Sound. With Cooper’s flawless physical transformation, the film will probably clean up with Makeup and Hairstyling awards.

"Priscilla" may sneak in nominations for director Sofia Coppla as well as acting noms for Jacob Elordi as Elvis. We wouldn’t rule out Best Adapted Screenplay nominations either.

This film about everyday life just outside the walls of Auschwitz is gathering interest for Best Picture, Director for Jonathan Glazer, Cinematography and Sound categories. Sandra Hüller will probably be nominated for Best Supporting Actress. As the U.K.’s official submission, it is a frontrunner in the International Feature category.

The buzz for this dark comedy about an author pretending to be stereotypically Black to sell books is growing, especially for star Jeffrey Wright. It will definitely be shortlisted for Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay, as well as Score.

We’re certain this Andrew Scott-led film about a man embarking on a relationship with a neighbor while seeing the ghosts of his parents in his childhood home will get nominations for Adapted Screenplay, but maybe even Scott himself. Nominations for the rest of the cast, like Paul Mescal, Claire Foy and Jamie Bell are a longshot but possible.

Reviews for this quiet film about a lonely teacher and his student staying at a boarding school over holiday break are good and maybe enough to be on shortlists for Best Picture, Director for Alexander Payne and Best Actor for Paul Giamatti. Da’Vine Joy Randolph will certainly gather awards for her portrayal of the head cook, also stuck with the duo. Original Screenplay and Film Editing nominations are also likely.

Everyone is talking about this indulgent takedown of the upper-class thanks to a few squirmy scenes that made audiences gasp. Will that be enough for voters, though? Don’t count it out for Screenplay, Production Design or Cinematography nominations as well as acting noms for Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi and Rosamund Pike.

Bayard Rustin was an integral member of the civil rights movement, but was largely erased for being a gay man. This biopic, starring Colman Domingo, may earn him acting nominations. Lenny Kravitz’s song might also score some noms.

Beyond the heartthrob cast of Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White, this family wrestling film is also a tearjerker. Will Efron and White score nominations in addition to the audience’s hearts?

An American film featuring both spoken English and Korean, it has been nominated for Best Picture in some contests. It follows two childhood friends from childhood to adulthood and stars Greta Lee, a possible Best Actress nominee. The semi-autobiographical film may also get Original Screenplay nominations for writer/director Celine Song.

The adaptation of the Broadway musical is not getting the rave reactions the other film of the same name got (both were derived from the same book), but Danielle Brooks and Fantasia Barrino will hopefully get acting nominations.

Stunningly animated and a feast for Spiderman fans, the second installment in the series is getting buzz as a potential nominee for Best Picture as well as Visual Effects and Score. It is guaranteed to be this season’s Best Animated Film.

The professional and personal struggles of Enzo Ferrari may not get nominations for Adam Driver or Penelope Cruz, but it is a lock for Sound awards, thanks to all the vrooming cars.

The reaction to the Ridley Scott Napoleon biopic has been firmly mixed, but voters may show the film some love in Production Design categories.