Written by Jordan Ilan Edited by Nikki Wilks
It’s only been a month since Everything Everywhere All at Once’s historic sweep, but it’s now time to look ahead for potential contenders at next year’s Oscars! With Cannes Film Festival right around the corner, and many studios starting to release promo pictures for 2023 releases, a range of films, from blockbusters to biopics, are vying to be competitive at the upcoming Oscars. In this article, I will look at each studio’s biggest contenders for this upcoming awards season.
A24
After becoming the first studio to win all the acting categories at this year’s Oscars, A24 will be hoping for similar success next year. Their biggest contender so far is the festival hit Past Lives. Celine Song’s film follows two childhood friends who reunite over one week in New York. The film received raves and has won awards at the Sundance and Berlin film festivals, resonating strongly with audiences. A24’s other major contenders include Sean Durkin’s third film The Iron Claw and Sofia Coppola’s biopic Priscilla. The former stars Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White in a story about a dynasty of family wrestlers, and the latter sees Coppola explore Elvis Presley’s life from his wife’s perspective.
Many other A24 films could make a dent, but might be too niche for The Oscars. Ari Aster’s Beau is Afraid has its champions but could be too divisive for The Oscars. Alex Garland follows-up his divisive film, Men with the Kirsten Dunst-starring Civil War, while Rose Glass’ follow-up to Saint Maud explores the world of bodybuilding with Kristen Stewart in Love Lies Bleeding. Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve lead the drama A Different Man, and the latter stars alongside Lily-Rose Depp and Hoyeon in The Governesses. Jonathan Glazer’s first film in ten years, Holocaust drama The Zone of Interest, is set to premiere in competition at Cannes. And after earning acclaim in X and Pearl, Mia Goth will complete the trilogy with MaXXXine. Could the goodwill from the previous films lead to Oscar buzz for Goth? (Though there’s a chance MaXXXine could be a 2024 release).
Amazon Studios/MGM
Amazon’s line-up for this season looks like the strongest they’ve had in ages. Their biggest contender is likely Saltburn, Emerald Fennell’s first movie since Promising Young Woman. This thriller stars Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi and Rosamund Pike, and is said to have a similar tone to The Talented Mr. Ripley. Another major contender is AIR, which has received critical acclaim and solid box office revenue so far. The film’s A-list ensemble and populist American sports subject could keep it in conversation all year. Amazon also has Rachel Morrison’s debut movie Flint Strong, with a screenplay by Barry Jenkins, and the Saoirse Ronan-Paul Mescal starring Foe.
Amazon’s acquirement of MGM provides some more contenders. The Luca Guadagnino, Zendaya-led Challengers could be popular enough to gain Oscar attention, and Alicia Vikander and Jude Law lead Tudor-historical drama Firebrand that will premiere at Cannes. Emma Seligman’s Bottoms received acclaim at SXSW and could score a screenplay nomination, and after earning acclaim on stage, veterans Ed Harris and Jessica Lange could return to the Oscars with the film adaptation of Long Day’s Journey Into Night. Finally, the adaptation of Pulitzer Prize winning The Nickel Boys could be a major contender, though this might be a 2024 release.
Apple
After winning Best Picture at the Oscars with CODA in 2022, Apple have many films from major auteurs coming out, and have announced a proper cinema rollout for these movies. Killers of the Flowers Moon is perceived as the year-in-advance frontrunner, and that’s not surprising with its starry cast and crew of Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro and Lily Gladstone all likely to earn awards attention this year. Napoleon reteams Ridley Scott with Joaquin Phoenix for an exploration of the infamous French General’s politics and relationship with his wife (played by Vanessa Kirby). And Steve McQueen returns with the Saoirse Ronan-led World War II film Blitz, which, if post-production is completed in-time, will likely be a major contender this year. Apple also have the crowd-pleasing Sundance hit Flora & Son, and the Riz Ahmed-Jessie Buckley sci-fi Fingernails.
Neon
Neon often acquires movies without distribution at festivals, so their slate is limited currently. The Josh O’Connor starring La Chimera could be another Cannes breakthrough for the studio (following in the footsteps of Parasite and Triangle of Sadness). Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway star in the thriller remake Mother’s Instinct. Most promising is Duke Johnson’s drama The Actor, which could earn awards buzz for André Holland and Gemma Chan.
Netflix
As always, Netflix’s slate has lots of potential overdue Oscar contenders. Their big player seems to be Leonard Bernstein’s biopic Maestro, with 9-time nominee Bradley Cooper directing, writing, and starring in this film alongside Carey Mulligan. Could both Cooper and Mulligan win their overdue acting awards for Maestro? David Fincher could achieve Oscar glory with the Michael Fassbender-Tilda Swinton thriller The Killer. Award veterans Annette Bening and Jodie Foster might be competitive for the biographical sports drama Nyad. Adam Sandler’s recent awards run could culminate with a nomination for Spaceman, from the director of Chernobyl and also co-starring Mulligan. And the adaptation of August Wilson’s Broadway play The Piano Lesson will likely earn attention for its screenplay and Samuel L. Jackson’s performance, but this might be a 2024 release. Ava DuVernay’s Caste with Aunjanue Ellis will also likely be a big player but could be 2024.
Also on Netflix’s schedule: biopics Rustin and Shirley are potential acting contenders for Colman Domingo and Regina King. The Emily Blunt-led Pain Hustlers and the Julia Roberts-Mahershala Ali thriller Leave the World Behind both have potential to be commercial and critical successes. Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget might be the animated frontrunner, and Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl adaptation The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar will likely have its fans.
Paramount
Paramount’s slate is quiet currently, but they could be onto a potential winner with their Bob Marley biopic. The film stars Kingsley Ben-Adir and Lashana Lynch as Bob and Rita Marley, which could be another biopic hit for the Academy. And after last year’s success with Top Gun: Maverick, the appreciation for Tom Cruise’s stunts could lead to success for Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1.
Searchlight/Disney
Yorgos Lanthimos returns after five years with Poor Things, which could earn nominations in major categories for Lanthimos and stars Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe. Lanthimos also has shot another film with many of the same cast members, AND, but this will likely release in 2024. Taika Waititi’s Next Goal Wins has been scheduled for release every year so far this decade, but Searchlight dating this for release in prime-time Oscar season could be a good sign for this Michael Fassbender crowd-pleaser. Andrew Haigh’s drama Strangers stars in-demand actors Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott, and Jeff Nichols’ The Bikeriders also has a starry ensemble including Austin Butler, Tom Hardy and Jodie Comer. Nightbitch has a wild premise for overdue star Amy Adams, but its current Hulu status might prevent it from being Oscar-eligible. And Tina Mabry’s drama The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat could be a film currently under the radar that ends up being a surprise success. Disney’s slate is likely to either be successful with their songs, in the technical categories (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Little Mermaid) or animated feature (Wish, Elemental).
Sony
After the acclaim of the first film, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse could be successful enough to contend in major categories including Best Picture. The Book of Clarence is Jeymes Samuel’s follow-up to The Harder They Fall and features another starry ensemble. Another big ensemble to watch out for is Craig Gillespie’s GameStop film Dumb Money. Sony Pictures Classics has acclaimed Sundance drama A Little Prayer, and Freud’s Last Session could result in another Oscar nomination for Anthony Hopkins.
Universal and Focus Features
Universal’s major player will be Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, which will likely receive many nominations. The film could score stars Cillian Murphy and Emily Blunt their first nominations. Illumination’s box office smash The Super Mario Bros. Movie could receive nominations in animation and song for Jack Black’s ‘Peaches’.
Focus Features also have a strong line-up. Sundance jury prize winner A Thousand and One received major acclaim for Teyana Taylor’s performance, which could transfer to Oscar buzz. Wes Anderson returns with another starry ensemble in Asteroid City, which could be a screenplay contender. After Sideways nearly 20 years ago, Alexander Payne and Paul Giamatti reteam for The Holdovers which reportedly impressed buyers at the Toronto Film Festival last year. Ethan Coen has a solo outing with Drive-Away Dolls, and the Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black could potentially be ready by the end of the year.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. has four potentially massive commercial and critical successes on their hands. After the original adaptation of The Color Purple won 0 Oscars from 11 nominations, the Tony Award-winning musical adaptation will hope for better success. Fantasia Barrino could be a major Best Actress contender for her performance as Celie, and the film will likely also receive attention for its direction, songs, and actors Taraji P. Henson and Danielle Brooks. After Dune was nominated across the board, Warner Bros. will be hoping for similar success with Dune: Part Two, with Denis Villeneuve maybe scoring a director nomination this time. Dune’s star Timothee Chalamet also leads the new adaptation of Wonka from Paddington 2 director Paul King. And with a major viral marketing campaign and a high-profile cast and crew (with Greta Gerwig as writer-director, and Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling starring), Barbie might be a blockbuster with enough appeal to score major Oscar nominations.
Other studios
Lionsgate will likely campaign for John Wick: Chapter 4 in the technical categories, and Michael Mann’s Ferrari with Adam Driver, Penelope Cruz and Shailene Woodley will likely have a strong presence on the fall festival circuit. Bleecker Street has the Helen Mirren-led biopic Golda and Sundance acclaimed hit The Starling Girl, whilst Roadside Attractions will release musical biopic Dreamin’ Wild.
No studio to date
As always at this point in this season, many potential contenders are yet to have a studio attached. After her recent Emmy success, Kate Winslet will hope to translate this to Oscar glory with World War II biopic Lee, which co-stars Andrea Riseborough. Todd Haynes Cannes-bound drama May December teams Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, and Wicked Little Letters reteams Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley. Jodie Comer could earn awards attention for her role in survival drama The End We Start From, and Nicholas Winton biopic One Life could give Anthony Hopkins a third Oscar. Hayao Miyazaki also returns to the director’s chair with How Do You Live?, which could result in Studio Ghibli’s biggest Oscar success to-date. Other potential contenders include the Jessica Chastain-Peter Sarsgaard thriller Memory, Lily James-Willem Dafoe drama Finalmente l’alba, the Saoirse Ronan-led The Outrun, and Angelina Jolie-directed Without Blood. And could Francis Ford Coppola’s passion project Megalopolis surprisingly come out this year and give the director one more shot at glory?
For fun, here’s the ten films I’m currently predicting to be nominated in Best Picture:
- Barbie
- The Bikeriders
- The Color Purple
- The Iron Claw
- Killers of the Flowers Moon
- Maestro
- Oppenheimer
- Past Lives
- Poor Things
- Saltburn
As always with these articles, some of these films will be successful and some will be completely forgotten! It will be interesting to see how many of these films make an impact this time next year!
reeltalk0.movie.blog 