Oscars Odds 2024: Oppenheimer a good bet to clear up

| January 31 |

7 mins read

It will be another star-studded event on the 10th March, as the 96th Academy Awards give out their legendary Oscar statues. Our regular film buff Adam Roberts has taken a look at the Betfred odds after the nominations were announced and analysed the early favourites' chances.

When are the Oscars taking place?

The 96th Academy Awards are taking place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles and will be held on the 10th March, 2024.

Who is hosting the Oscars 2024?

Comedian and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel has been announced as the host of the Academy Awards, which will be his fourth time presenting the event.

Where can I watch the Oscars 2024 in the UK?

After two decades of being broadcast on subscription tv via Sky Cinema, the Oscars will be shown on ITV and ITVX this year, meaning more people than ever will be able to watch it on terrestrial.

Best Picture Odds

Oppenheimer - 1/10

Where to watch? - Available to rent on all major streaming services

The all-conquering Oppenheimer first burst into our consciousness as part of the 'Barbenheimer' phenomenon, which helped both this film and Barbie (see below) build massive publicity, with people going to watch both films in the same sitting.

As a result, this biographical epic of the Manhattan Project and J. Robert Oppenheimer broke all records for a biography, taking almost a $1 billion at the worldwide box office. Christopher Nolan can do no wrong in Hollywood's eyes it seems, with Oppenheimer adding to his long-list of oscar nominated films.

The film picked up five Golden Globes including best film and has 13 nominations at both the BAFTA's and the upcoming Academy Awards. This looks about as sure a thing as you can get...

Poor Things - 10/1

Where to watch? - Showing in cinemas

This sci-fi comedy is based on the 1992 novel by Scottish author Alisdair Gray and follows a Frankenstein-esque story of creator and 'monster'. Emma Stone plays the lead role of Bella Baxter, who goes on a journey of discovery, as she finds sexual liberation in the wider world. Willem Dafoe plays the disfigured and eccentric surgeon Godwin Baxter, who resurrected Bella from a tragic suicide.

The film was a small success at the box office but has been critically acclaimed, picking up 11 Oscar nominations and two Golden Globe wins for Best Comedy and Best Actress for Stone.

The Holdovers - 12/1

Where to watch? - Showing in cinemas

This quirky little comedy is set at Christmas in a boarding school and has already seen the film pick up a couple of Golden Globes.

One of those was for lead actor Paul Giamatti, who is best known for playing Chuck Rhoades Jr. in the HBO series Billions.

This is one of five Academy Awards nominations, including Giamatti again who is up for a Best Actor double.

Anatomy of a Fall - 20/1

Where to watch? - Available to rent on all major streaming services

Our first of three foreign language films nominated for Best Picture, Anatomy of a Fall is a French legal drama, about a woman trying to prove her innocence in her husband's death.

Justine Triet's movie won the acclaimed Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and has since gone on to win two Golden Globes, including Best Foreign Language Film.

This is one of five Oscar nominations, with Triet nominated as Best Director and Sandra Huller as Best Actress.

The film was also a smash-hit at the box office, bringing in four times its budget worldwide to date.

Killers of the Flower Moon - 25/1

Where to watch? - Available to stream on Appletv+

This Martin Scorsese epic is a western crime drama based around the Osage Nation murders, following the discovery of oil on their land.

In typical Scorsese fashion, the film is epically long in length too, racking up a 206 minute run-time!

Usual Scorsese actors, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, lead the star-studded cast and though it has been a disappointment at the box office, it has been released to critical acclaim.

Lead Actress Lily Gladstone was the only winner at the recent Golden Globes despite seven nominations but that could well change at the Oscars, as the Killers of the Flower Moon has a huge ten nominations here.

Barbie - 25/1

Where to watch? - Available to rent on all major streaming services

The second and bigger half of the 'Barbenheimer' movement, Barbie has smashed records galore at the box-office.

Greta Gerwig's live-action comedy-fantasy about the plastic children's dolls Barbie and Ken, has taken almost $1.5 billion at the cinema and was the highest-grossing film of 2023.

Barbie has been nominated for eight Academy Awards but controversially neither Gerwig or lead actress Margot Robbie were among them. Ryan Gosling, who plays Ken and was nominated, said it was a travesty and the film simply wouldn't have been made without them.

Feminist critics have also drawn comparisons between the snub and the patriarchal society that is regularly criticised in the film's plot.

American Fiction - 33/1

Where to watch? - Showing in cinemas

This comedy-drama features Jeffrey Wright in the lead role and Cord Jefferson as the director in his feature debut.

A slow-burner at the box-office but again has received widespread critical praise and was enough to garner five Oscar nominations.

The plot follows a black writer who is down on his luck and so decides to write a preposterously outlandish pastiche 'black-book' in protest. The book then goes on to be hugely successful and leads to Wright taking on the persona of former convict Stagg R. Leigh.

The Zone of Interest - 33/1

Where to watch? - Showing in cinemas

The Zone of Interest is a German historical drama, loosely based on the 2014 novel of the same name by British author Martin Amis.

It tells the story of a Nazi commander (Christian Friedel), who dreams of setting up a marital home on the boundaries of the Auschwitz concentration camp. His wife is played by Sandra Huller, who has also been nominated as Best Actress for Anatomy of a Fall.

This troubling film has been released to universal acclaim and has picked up five Academy Award nominations in the process, including Best Director for Jonathan Glazer.

Past Lives - 50/1

Where to watch? - Available to rent on all major streaming services

The last of our foreign language films nominated, Past Lives is a Korean/US co-production and is a romantic drama loosely based on events from first time director, Celine Song's life.

It follows the story of two childhood friends whose lives intertwine over a 24-year period, with a constant will they, won't they narrative.

Past Lives received five Golden Globes nominations, as well as two more for the Academy Awards.

Maestro - 66/1

Where to watch? - Available to stream on Netflix

Maestro is a biographical film about the life of American composer Leonard Bernstein (played by Bradley Cooper) and his relationship with his wife Felicia Montealegre (played by three-time Oscar nominee Carey Mulligan).

Cooper also directed the film, which was produced by Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg amongst others. Similar to most Netflix-produced movies, it only received a limited theatrical release, before being shown on their streaming subscription service.

Maestro has been nominated for seven Academy Awards but came up winless at the Golden Globes.

Here are the nominees and favourites in all the other main categories: