• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Arts & Entertainment

The Oscar Goes to . . .? Predictions and Betting Odds for the 90th Academy Awards

By
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 28, 2018, 3:18 PM ET

Hollywood’s biggest night comes this weekend, when the 90th Academy Awards air on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET.

Over a month after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced this year’s Oscar nominees, and the entire movie industry can still only guess at who will leave Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre with a golden statue on Sunday night. Movie critics, awards experts, and Vegas oddsmakers alike have been weighing in on some of this year’s biggest Oscars debates, from actor Gary Oldman versus Timothee Chalamet to The Shape of Water against Get Out. (This year’s event could even see some side bets on whether there will be another envelope snafu at the end of the night, though the Academy and PricewaterhouseCoopers have taken some precautions against that possibility.)

While we won’t know for sure the identities of all of this year’s Oscar winners until host Jimmy Kimmel kicks off the festivities on ABC this Sunday, the small cottage industry of Academy Award predictions has plenty of thoughts on the subject. Fortune rounded up some of the leading forecasts for Oscars night, along with a few alternative methods for predicting who should be polishing their acceptance speeches.

The experts

New York‘s culture website Vulture wrote recently about the difficulty in forecasting this year’s Best Picture Oscar race for reasons that include an especially diverse crowd of contenders, as well as last-minute controversies and an all-around “politically charged moment” in time. It is true that popular opinion has shifted repeatedly with regard to this year’s most award-worthy films. The dark comedy Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri won big at the Golden Globes earlier this year, but the film has also seen a sustained backlash from critics over its questionable ending and a perceived failure in fleshing out the movie’s non-white characters. Meanwhile, current frontrunner The Shape of Water—the sci-fi/fantasy love story about a janitor and a man-like amphibian—was recently hit with a lawsuit alleging plagiarism, which is unlikely to be resolved before this weekend and could possibly have affected some last-minute votes (Academy Award voting closed earlier this week).

With those two films showing potential weaknesses, there is room for a surprise winner like Get Out, the horror film about racism, or the coming-of-age LGBTQ romance Call Me By Your Name, among others.

Still, Hollywood trade outlets Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, along with Entertainment Weekly, all predict a Best Picture win for The Shape of Water (and for that movie’s director, Guillermo del Toro) out of the category’s nine-movie field. And, the data-centric FiveThirtyEight, which makes its Oscars predictions by assigning point values to the many other Hollywood awards that precede the Academy’s big event, tallied up the results and also picked The Shape of Water as Sunday’s most likely headlining winner.

In the other big Oscar categories, all of the above media outlets are in agreement on Gary Oldman (for his turn as Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour) and Three Billboards‘ Frances McDormand will likely win for Best Actor and Best Actress, respectively. Meanwhile, Three Billboards‘ Sam Rockwell and I, Tonya‘s Allison Janney both seem to have tight grips on their respective Supporting Actor/Actress races.

Vegas odds

It appears that Las Vegas oddsmakers are not in total agreement with movie experts, as the online gambling site Bovada actually has Three Billboards (20/23) as the odds-on bet to win the Best Picture race over the likes of The Shape of Water (7/5), Get Out (11/2), and Lady Bird (14/1). (The U.K. odds comparison website OddsChecker similarly favors Three Billboards over The Shape of Water.) As far as the acting awards, though, Bovada’s picks are in line with critics and journalists, with the best odds going to Oldman, McDormand, Rockwell, and Janney in their respective categories.

Iconic director Steven Spielberg finds himself in the rare position (for him) as an Oscars dark horse, with the historical drama The Post tied for the worst odds of winning Best Picture (100/1) with Darkest Hour and Daniel Day-Lewis’ final film, Phantom Thread.

Box Office, Social Media as predictors

Looking for other metrics on which to base your Oscar ballot picks? Well, director Christopher Nolan’s intense World War II epic Dunkirk was certainly the winner at the box office, topping all Best Picture nominees with a worldwide gross of $525 million, according to Box Office Mojo. Get Out is the second highest-grossing Best Picture nominee ($255 million globally), as that particular Oscars field is frequently devoid of blockbusters. Of course, some of the nominated films are still in theaters, and winning a big haul at the Academy Awards is known to result in a bump at movie theaters, which is all the more reason for studios to pull out all the stops in their awards-season marketing efforts. (Fortune already wrote about the companies and movie studios that are behind this year’s biggest Academy Award nominees.)

Meanwhile, Dunkirk also fared the best of all Best Picture nominees on YouTube, with the movie’s trailer getting nearly 44 million global views on Google’s digital video service (Get Out and The Shape of Water are the runners up in that regard, with 30 million and 18 million respective views for their trailers).

About the Author
By Tom Huddleston Jr.
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Arts & Entertainment

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Arts & Entertainment

pizza
PoliticsRestaurants
‘Earth-shaking event for New York pizza’ looms as flour ban hits 80% of crusts citywide
By Jake Offenhartz and The Associated PressMay 22, 2026
19 hours ago
Stephen Colbert signs off after 11 years tonight. CBS cites finances, but the Late Show host blames Trump
Arts & EntertainmentStephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert signs off after 11 years tonight. CBS cites finances, but the Late Show host blames Trump
By Dave Lozo and Morning BrewMay 21, 2026
2 days ago
murdoch
Big TechMedia
James Murdoch vows ‘ambitious journalism and agenda-setting conversations’ as he takes over New York, Vox brands
By Jocelyn Noveck and The Associated PressMay 21, 2026
2 days ago
target
Retailearnings
Target posts biggest jump in comparable sales in 4 years as turnaround takes shape
By Anne D'Innocenzio and The Associated PressMay 20, 2026
3 days ago
Photo of Brian Stelter
Arts & EntertainmentWorkplace Innovation Summit
CNN analyst and ‘The Morning Show’ producer says Stephen Colbert is a role model for his ‘positive’ outlook on his show ending
By Emma BurleighMay 19, 2026
4 days ago
‘Change the World’ idealism is dying in Silicon Valley. We’ll miss it when it’s gone
CommentarySilicon Valley
‘Change the World’ idealism is dying in Silicon Valley. We’ll miss it when it’s gone
By Jonathan WeberMay 19, 2026
4 days ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
2 days ago
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
Success
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
3 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
4 days ago
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Success
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
By Emma BurleighMay 22, 2026
18 hours ago
Microsoft reports are exposing AI's real cost problem: Using the tech is more expensive than paying human employees
AI
Microsoft reports are exposing AI's real cost problem: Using the tech is more expensive than paying human employees
By Jake AngeloMay 22, 2026
17 hours ago
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
Workplace Culture
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
By Sydney LakeMay 20, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.