Barbenheimer? Godzilla? Spider-Man?: The Wealth of Geeks 2024 Oscar Nominations Predictions

The time has come.

After a year of box office duds, strikes, CEO stupidity and the usual behind-the-scenes drama, Hollywood has kicked off Awards Season, culminating, as usual with the Academy Awards on March 10, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.

But before the teary speeches and on-stage antics (hopefully devoid of slaps), those thirsting for the Oscar statue need to pass one major hurdle: the 2024 Oscar Nominations.

With nods handed out the morning of January 23, we here at Wealth of Geeks have narrowed down our predictions for the contenders in all major categories, as well as some of our favorite, unsung gems that the Academy should notice. As for who will win—well, we’ll make those predictions a bit closer to the ceremony.

So, get the ballot ready, and prepare to add to that screening list. Here come the Wealth of Geeks 2024 Oscar Nominations predictions.

Best Actor

• Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
• Bradley Cooper, Maestro
• Paul Giamatti, Holdovers
• Barry Keoghan, Saltburn
• Colman Domingo, Rustin

The Golden Globe wins for Giamatti (coupled with Academy love of Alexander Payne, director of The Holdovers) and Murphy signal they will find their names here. Domingo and Cooper popping up in the SAG nominations also hints that the two will compete for the statue. The wild card here is Keoghan, and while Saltburn didn't earn universal acclaim, Keoghan's performance did. We think he'll edge out a few other possible contenders, including Leonardo DiCaprio and Jeffrey Wright.

Memo to the Academy: Best Actor

Andrew Scott delivered one of the year's most breathtaking and haunting performances in All of Us Strangers. He deserves a nod far more than Academy darling Bradley Cooper.

Best Actress

• Carey Mulligan, Maestro
• Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Margot Robbie, Barbie
• Emma Stone, Poor Things
• Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall

Gladstone's near-perfect track record this season, coupled with her rave reviews, announce her as leader of the pack for the Best Actress statuette. Love for Barbie, however, will also place Robbie in contention. Emma Stone's win at the Golden Globes, as well as the over-all strong showing for Poor Things will land her a nod as well. Though Bradley Cooper appears to have conceived Maestro as a vanity vehicle, Mulligan earned accolades for her work. Recent weeks have also seen Netflix shift its campaign focus from Cooper to Mulligan, hinting that the company sees her as the best chance for a win.

That leaves a spot for one more leading lady, with Annette Benning (Nyad) and Greta Lee (Past Lives) both in contention. Benning's SAG nomination could hint at an edge here, though we think the love for Anatomy of A Fall at the Globes hints Hüller will land the fifth spot.

Memo to the Academy: Best Actress

Though buzzed about in Awards Circles, Natalie Portman really should land a spot here, having given her best performance in a decade in May December.

Best Supporting Actor

• Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer
• Charles Melton, May December
• Robert De Niro, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things
• Willem Dafoe, Poor Things

Raves for Poor Things will likely nab spots for Ruffalo and Dafoe–previous nominees who haven't won–among the contenders here. General love for Martin Scorsese, as well as two-time winner De Niro will likely add him to the mix as well

But, of course, the frontrunners remain Downey and Melton. The former has one of the best comeback stories in Hollywood history, and has become a beloved actor over the past fifteen years. The fresh-faced Melton delivers the standout performance in May December, and opposite two of the best actresses alive. 

Memo to the Academy: Best Supporting Actor

Colman Domingo looks to land a spot among the Best Actor nominees. Still, we'd be remiss not to note that he gave two Oscar-caliber performances in 2023, including this supporting turn in The Color Purple. Making a character both loathsome and sympathetic–especially in the context of this story–requires an actor of extreme power. Domingo doesn't just light up the screen. He full-on generates pyrotechnics.

Best Supporting Actress

• Julianne Moore, May December
• Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple
• Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
• Rosamund Pike, Saltburn
• Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer

Like Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore gives one of her best performances in May December, and since the Academy loves her, we predict she'll earn a spot. Rave reviews for Brooks and Randolph (along with the latter's Globe win) will likely earn them notice as well. 

Blunt, one of the most cherished actresses working, has never scored an Oscar nomination before, and given the Oppenheimer momentum, we predict that time has come. Like Barry Keoghan, Pike has earned across-the-board raves for her droll turn in Saltburn, and we don't think the Academy can resist.

Memo to the Academy: Best Supporting Actress

The much-hyped The Creator may rank as 2023's biggest waste of potential. That said, the debut performance by Madeleine Yuna Voyles stands out as one of the all-time great moppet performer debuts, and hints at just how good the movie could have been.

For that matter, one of the year's most overlooked gems, Eileen, sports a slinky, megawatt performance by Anne Hathaway, and deserves some attention.

We know, we're only supposed to pick one, but hey, both ladies demand some love.

Best Director

• Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
• Greta Gerwig, Barbie
• Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things
• Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Alexander Payne, The Holdovers

What looked like it would shape up as a competitive race now appears to have a singular frontrunner: Christopher Nolan. Lauded as one of the best directors alive, and who has helmed some of the best movies of the century (or any century, for that matter), Nolan has never picked up the golden statuette. That may soon change.

Gerwig also elevated Barbie from a feature-length toy commercial to a meditation on feminism, gender and purpose. The Academy loves Scorsese, and given the typical raves for Flower Moon, he will find a spot here as well. Ditto Payne, who has earned all kinds of love for a return to form with The Holdovers.

Lanthimos has emerged as one of the most interesting and innovative directors working, and as such, we see him sewing up the fifth nomination spot here.

Memo to the Academy: Best Director

May December‘s Todd Haynes has proven himself one of the reigning art house auteurs of the era, and has helped three actors nab noms (including Julianne Moore, who scored two with Haynes). Hey Hollywood! Do you think these performances direct themselves!?

Time to show Haynes proper love.

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Andrew Haigh, All of Us Strangers
• Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
• Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, Barbie
• Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
• Tony McNamara, Poor Things

Movies competing in multiple major categories usually land screenplay nods as well, and as such, Barbie, Killers, Oppenheimer and Poor Things all will likely land in this category. That leaves one extra spot, and given ongoing buzz for All of Us Strangers, we'll bet on Haigh scoring here.

Memo to the Academy: Best Adapted Screenplay

Critics love to throw stones at the Academy for not nominating more hits, though thank goodness it hasn't resorted to a “Best Achievement in Cinema and Box Office Award” to dilute and degrade its prestige. 

But we digress. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse looks poised to pick up nominations in other categories (more on that in a moment). Maybe the time has come for some attention to the writing?

Best Original Screenplay

• Justine Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall
• Celine Strong, Past Lives
• David Hemingson, The Holdovers
• Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer, Maestro
• Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik, May December

The screenplay rules lead to some funky nominations, and this year, it seems like the heavy-hitters all ended up in the Adapted category. Growing buzz for Anatomy of a Fall, Past Lives and The Holdovers will likely ensure their inclusion here. The same goes for the endless campaigning for Maestro, and if Bradley Cooper has a shot at winning anything this year, we suggest hedging bets on this category. 

As for the fifth spot, the black-as-pitch comedy of May December might catch the attention of voters, who want to give it some kind of recognition. 

Memo to the Academy: Best Original Screenplay

Speaking of pitch-black comedies, Saltburn continues to generate buzz, even if the movie doesn't add up to the sum of its parts. Still, witty dialogue and plot twists go a long way–far enough for us.

Best Original Song

• “What Was I Made For?” Billie Eilish and Finneas, Barbie
• “Dance the Night” Caroline Ailin, Dua Lipa, Mark Ronson, and Andrew Wyatt, Barbie
• “Road to Freedom” Lenny Kravitz, Rustin
• “She Came to Me” Bruce Springsteen, She Came to Me
• “Am I Dreaming” A$AP Rocky, Metro Boomin, Michael Dean, Peter Lee Johnson, Roisee, and Scriptplugg

Much like the Disney musicals of the 90s, it looks like Barbie could pick up two or three nominations here. We'll keep it conservative, and predict that the two big radio hits will capture most of the attention. Radio war horses Bruce Springsteen and Lenny Kravitz also have enough innate popularity to get some votes here too.

That leaves one spot, and we'll take this time to point out that hip-hop has started gaining more and and more attention from the Academy in recent years. Three 6 Mafia, Eminem and Lin-Manuel Miranda all nabbed wins. Therefore, we suggest that “Am I Dreaming” will get some attention as well. 

Memo to the Academy: Best Original Song

As with South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut almost 25 years ago, fans already whisper about Barbie‘s joke song actually being the best tune in the movie. Their mantra “I'm Kenough” has already become a pop-culture staple

Best Animated Feature

• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
• The Boy and the Heron
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
• Robot Dreams
• Nimona

Yes, we know: Disney has thrown considerable weight behind the mediocre Elemental in hopes of trying to salvage its reputation. That might nab it a spot, though for our money, Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron, and the blockbuster hits Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse feel like safer bets. Not to mention, they also help combat the “art-house” only reputation of the modern Academy.

That leaves space for two other entries, and we suspect the indie hit Robot Dreams and underrated Nimona have a great chance at landing some love. 

Memo to the Academy: Best Animated Feature

The long-awaited sequel Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget hit the spot with it more than any Disney offering this year. 

Best Foreign Language Film

• The Zone of Interest
• Society of the Snow
• The Taste of Things
• Perfect Days
• 20 Days in Mariupol

Rave reviews for Society and Zone have given both titles considerable momentum ahead of the 2024 Oscar Nominations, and both have also attracted awards elsewhere. Strong reviews for Taste and Perfect will also prop them up here.

That leaves one spot that will go to Mariupol, aided by the timeliness of a film about the Ukranian invasion. 

Memo to the Academy: Best Foreign Language Film

Though likely a contender in some technical categories, Japan overlooked submitting Godzilla Minus One in the Foreign Language category. That's a shame: it is one of the best films of the year. Speaking of…

Best Picture

• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Poor Things
• Oppenheimer
• Barbie
• Past Lives
• Anatomy of a Fall
• The Holdovers
• The Zone of Interest
• All of Us Strangers
• Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

The Academy sees a chance to look more relevant by nominating some major hits this year, and as such, Barbie, Oppenheimer, and Spider-Man will likely earn nominations, if for no other reason, than to look mainstream. Other major contenders across the board include Poor Things, Anatomy, Zone, Strangers, Lives and Killers. Look for them to round out contention for the top award.

But one more thought…

Memo to the Academy: Best Picture

Yes, we've already mentioned Godzilla Minus One, though since the Academy gets to mention the same movies over and over, we decided to take the same opportunity. What better opportunity to bridge mainstream sensibility and art house subversion?