The2026 Oscarsare still a long time away, but it’s never too early to begin speculating about which of this year’s biggest hits could end up making themselves known at the ceremony. There have already been some majorOscar candidates from 2025 so far, but the second half of the year is typically when the awards players come to light.
Although the Academy has done a great job of including different genres and honoring more newcomers over the past few years,it’s still fairly easy to spot when a film fits the typical criteria of an “Oscars movie”. Several of these projects are coming up over the next few months, with some even releasing on the same day and causingsome exciting Oscars showdownsbetween actors.
Following the immense success of bothQueerandChallengerslast year,Luca Guadagnino is back with his latestpsychological thriller,After the Hunt. The moviestars Andrew Garfield, Julia Roberts, and Ayo Edebirias two professors and their student whose lives are turned upside down when dangerous accusations are leveled against them.
Although Guadagnino’s breakthrough featureCall Me By Your Nameperformed excellently at the Academy Awards, pulling in a strong nomination for Best Picture, the filmmaker remains very underrepresented for his recent movies. BothChallengersandBones And Allmissed out, despite their huge critical acclaim.Perhaps 2026 will finally be the Italian director’s year, with his star-studded cast pushing him to victory.
Kathryn Bigelow is best known for her gritty, grounded action movies likeThe Hurt LockerandZero Dark Thirty(both of which received Best Picture nominations), andA House of Dynamiteseems to be following a similar format. Like many ofBigelow’s best movies, her upcoming feature is a political thriller that depicts the United States of America in its darkest moments.
A House of Dynamitefollows a group of leading politicians in the moments before a deadly missile strike against the American people, telling a high-stakes narrative of control and sacrifice.The movie stars Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, and Kaitlyn Deverin the lead roles, and marks her first directorial effort since 2017’sDetroit.
Both Rian Johnson’sKnives OutandGlass Onionwere nominated for their respective screenplay awards at the Oscars, and there’s no reason to believe thatWake Up Dead Manwill break the trend.The movie will premiere at the London Film Festivallater this year, before landing on Netflix just months before the Academy Awards.
Johnson confirmed thatWake Up Dead Manwill be very different fromGlass Onion,ditching the slick and glossy visuals of the previous installment for a return to the dark, Gothic aesthetics of the original movie. Daniel Craig will return as Benoit Blanc, with newcomers including Jeremy Renner, Josh O’Connor, and Mila Kunis.
It’s never a good idea to bet against Yorgos Lanthimos at the Oscars, andBugonialooks like one of the director’s most interesting and ambitious projects in a while. ThoughKinds of Kindnessreceived zero nominations at this year’s ceremony, the director has previously achieved success with projects likePoor Things, which was a strong contender for Best Picture in 2024.
Bugoniaseems to be sticking to the dark humor of Lanthimos’ existing filmography, with the story following two crazed conspiracy theorists who capture the CEO of a major company when they become convinced she’s a hostile alien life form.The first trailer forBugonialooks very promising, and the return of Lanthimos’ frequent collaborators Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons can only be a good sign.
Horror movies have historically suffered at the Oscars, butthe Academy has become much more accepting of the genreover the past few years. With movies likeThe SubstanceandGet Outreceiving Best Picture nominations over the past decade, there’s no reason to believe that a seasoned auteur like Guillermo del Toro won’t get in with his upcomingFrankensteinadaptation.
The movie is said to be a passion project of del Toro’s, as the director has been trying to get the monster movie off the ground for years. Though little has beenrevealed about Del Toro’sFrankenstein,the filmmaker has been warmly welcomed by the Academy in recent years, including a surprise Best Picture nomination forNightmare Alley,so the movie seems like a comfortable bet.
Benny Safdie first broke onto the scene after directingGood TimeandUncut Gemsalongside his brother, but the director’s first solo feature,The Smashing Machine,may finally capture the Academy’s attention. With Dwayne Johnson in the lead role,the sports drama follows MMA fighter Mark Kerras he faces towering obstacles both inside and outside the ring.
Following a string of studio comedies and action blockbusters from Johnson,The Smashing Machineseems like a major change of pace that could work wonders for the actor’s career. His experience in the world of wrestling makes him the perfect candidate to tellthe true story of Mark Kerr’s life, and it’s exactly the kind of powerful drama that tends to perform very well at the Oscars.
Die, My Lovemarks auteur filmmaker Lynne Ramsay’s long-awaited return after an eight-year hiatus, and the film opened to dazzling reviews outside of Cannes earlier this year. Starring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson,the story centers around a young mother who develops postpartum depressionand begins experiencing psychotic episodes that change her outlook on life.
Both Lawrence and Pattinson received immense praise for their performances by critics at Cannes, and many pundits are currently predicting them for success at the 2026 Oscars.
Both Lawrence and Pattinson received immense praise for their performances by critics at Cannes, and many pundits are currentlypredicting them for success at the 2026 Oscars. Ramsay’s previous movie,You Were Never Really Here, was completely snubbed by the Academy upon release, meaning several voters may be eager to give the director the praise she deserves this time around.
Paul Thomas Anderson is another huge name who shouldn’t be bet against at the Oscars, even though he’s never actually won. The director has become a figurehead of overdue Oscar narratives,with an incredible 11 nominations. Three of his films have even been nominated for Best Picture, but none of them managed to carry themselves to victory.
Licorice Pizza
Best Original Screenplay
While it’s too early to speculate whetherOne Battle After Anotherwill be the project that finally gets Anderson his Oscar, there’s certainly going to be a strong narrative going into this year’s awards season. With the film’s ensemble featuring the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio del Toro, and Sean Penn, the film will be impossible to overlook.
Jon M. Chu’sWickedwas an enormous success at last year’s Academy Awards, and the second part of this cinematic spectacle is going to be even bigger and more emotional than the first. There’s plenty to beexcited about inWicked: For Good, including several original songs and undoubtedly great performances that will be competing in the Oscars’ acting categories.
AlthoughWickeddidn’t take home any above-the-line awards at last year’s ceremony, this will only strengthen the narrative for the sequel. Lead actors Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande will certainly have strong claims in their respective categories, while the movie’s Best Picture chances have never been higher.
If there’s one movie still to come in 2025 that’s essentially guaranteed to appear at the Academy Awards in some capacity,it’s James Cameron’sAvatar: Fire & Ash.The project is essentially a shoo-in for the below-the-line categories, including Best Visual Effects and Best Editing, but Best Picture also seems like a lock since both previous installments received a nomination in the category.
While it’s certainly possible thatFire & Ashwill be the firstAvatarmovie not to receive a Best Picture nomination, this doesn’t seem likely. Theinitial teasers for theAvatarsequeldisplay a huge technical proficiency that’s become almost taken for granted with this sci-fi series, but the enormous storytelling scale is what truly makes it a strong contender for Best Picture.
