Who Will Win the 2017 Oscars? Our Predictions
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The Oscar nominations are out and all the other major award shows have taken place this season, so we can't help but leap to the next conclusion: who's going to win?! While we have a while to speculate and watch as the nominees campaign, we have pretty good ideas already about who will win the major categories. Taking into account the wins so far this award season, what the Academy tends to reward, and good ol' gut feelings, here are our predictions for the 2017 Oscar winners.
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Best Supporting Actor: Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Moonlight has been the Little Movie That Could this award season, and while we predict it for even loftier accomplishments (more on that later), one of the acting categories we're certain it will win is for best supporting actor. Mahershala Ali has had a steady trajectory this season with nominations at all the major shows and wins at the Critics' Choice and SAG Awards. While he didn't nab the Golden Globe in this category, the actor who did — Aaron Taylor-Johnson — isn't nominated for the Oscar, eliminating that threat.
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Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis, Fences
Viola Davis has already made history with her Oscar nomination, and we think she's going to break another record by winning the best supporting actress statue. With the Critics' Choice, Golden Globe, and record-breaking SAG Award already under her belt, it would be a huge upset for someone else to win over her. Indeed, this is Davis's year to win — and get one step closer to the coveted EGOT.
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Best Actor: Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Despite the troublesome accusations, the outcry from fellow actors, and the competition from Ryan Gosling in award season juggernaut La La Land, Casey Affleck still has the edge for the Oscar. Manchester by the Sea has earned Affleck the Critics' Choice and Golden Globe awards, while Denzel Washington just nabbed the SAG Award. With two major wins in the best actor category, we're still calling Affleck as the Oscar favorite.
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Best Actress: Emma Stone, La La Land
Back when this movie debuted at TIFF, we wouldn't have guessed that Stone would have been in serious contention for the best actress award — this is a musical and a comedy, two genres the Academy only rarely rewards. Fast-forward months later after Stone won the Golden Globe for best actress in a musical or comedy (the same night La La Land broke records with its wins) and then the Oscar-predicting SAG Award, and suddenly it seems like Stone is going to dance her way to the Oscar stage.
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Best Director: Damien Chazelle, La La Land
La La Land's Damien Chazelle may be young, but he's crazy talented, and the Academy seems poised to reward the filmmaker with the best director Oscar. His work on the musical was ambitious and intensive, and like a lot of names on this list, he just keeps ticking off awards. An Oscar is clearly in his future.
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Best Picture: Moonlight
Though there are nine nominees for best picture, we think it's really coming down to two: Moonlight and La La Land. While the musical has an edge and will certainly walk away with an armful of gold, we think the timely, lovely Moonlight will end up with the biggest award of the night.