Connect with us

Published

on

The 95th Academy Awards ceremony is almost upon us – the night the entire awards season has been building up to.

The Oscars mark the culmination of months of campaigning and huge amounts of spending from studios, but unlike previous years, the 2023 shortlist comes with some uncertainty as to who will take home those gold statuettes.

While there’s an obvious frontrunner for the top prize of best picture, in some of the acting categories things are far less clear cut – making this potentially one of the most exciting ceremonies in a while. So let’s take a look at who is likely to win…

Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Michelle Yeoh and James Hong in Everything Everywhere All At Once. Pic: A24
Image:
Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Michelle Yeoh and James Hong in Everything Everywhere All At Once. Pic: A24

Best picture

Usually I’d build up to this but there’s such an obvious frontrunner it’s actually the easiest category to predict this year. Everything Everywhere All At Once has been sweeping ceremonies in the run-up to the Academy Awards (with the BAFTAs being the notable exception – war epic All Quiet On The Western Front was the night’s big winner there).

While it’s far from what may have been considered an ‘Oscary’ film in previous years, exploring the multiverse via hotdog fingers and a new take on the Disney classic Ratatouille, its appeal is undeniable. When it wins it will be proof that it is films with big ideas, rather than just a big budget, that appeal to modern Academy voters.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Everything Everywhere star on Oscars nod

Best supporting actor

The next easiest to predict is best supporting actor, which will go to Ke Huy Quan for his role in Everything Everywhere All At Once. The star, who first found fame as a child actor in The Goonies and Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom in the 1980s, has been consistently winning throughout awards season.

He also gives lovely speeches and actually seems to enjoy the relentless slog of red carpets and events that nominees face in the run-up to the Oscars. A worthy winner, expect some tears on the night – from him and those watching.

Read more: From The Goonies to the Oscars – Ke Huy Quan’s ‘wild ride’ of a comeback

Kerry Condon poses for a portrait at the 95th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Image:
Kerry Condon pictured at the annual Academy Awards nominees luncheon in LA. Pic: AP/Chris Pizzello

Best supporting actress

A month ago I would have assumed Marvel would get its first acting win thanks to Angela Bassett‘s commanding performance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. However, the tide of appreciation may have turned, as we’ve seen other nominees in this category – Jamie Lee Curtis, Stephanie Hsu and Kerry Condon – all picking up prizes at various ceremonies in the last few weeks. While Bassett is great in Wakanda Forever, I suspect if she does win it would be a case of voters showing their appreciation for her entire career, rather than this one superhero film.

I actually have a hunch this award will go to one of the five Irish actors nominated this year – I predict a win for Kerry Condon for her performance in The Banshees Of Inisherin. She won this same prize at the BAFTAs and there is definitely some crossover. With Banshees well liked but likely to miss out in other acting categories I think voters will show some love to the dark comedy here.

Read more: Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson on their Banshees reunion

Brendan Fraser in The Whale. Pic: A24
Image:
Brendan Fraser in The Whale. Pic: A24

Best actor

This has been the hardest one to predict for me. At the start of the year, I thought the best actor prize would go to Colin Farrell, star of The Banshees Of Inisherin, but his hopes seem to have faded as awards season has rumbled on. It seems now to be between Brendan Fraser for The Whale and Austin Butler for Elvis.

We know the Academy loves a transformative role and both performances tick that box, with Fraser playing a hugely obese man in heavy prosthetics, while Butler became the singer – even seemingly permanently changing his own speaking voice for the biopic. It’s almost too close to call but as I’ve promised predictions I’m going to plump for Fraser – his comeback narrative after years feeling cast out of Hollywood is itself like something from a screenplay, and probably too irresistible for many Academy voters.

Read more: The ‘Bren-aissance’ – why Brendan Fraser is back in the spotlight

Cate Blanchett stars in Tar. Pic: Focus Features via AP
Image:
Cate Blanchett stars in Tar. Pic: Focus Features via AP

Best actress

This feels like another close race, between Cate Blanchett for her turn as the toxic composer Lydia Tar, and Michelle Yeoh for her performance as the multiverse-straddling lead of Everything Everywhere All At Once. While Yeoh surely has a strong chance of picking up a win, I suspect Blanchett will just edge it as she’s been consistently picking up prizes throughout awards season. I’m also guessing Tar is a very well liked film that perhaps won’t be recognised in other categories – and voters may be wary of ticking the Everything Everywhere box too many times.

Read more: Cate Blanchett on her ‘once in a career’ moment

Fabelmans. Pic: Amblin Entertainment/Universal Studios
Image:
The Fabelmans. Pic: Amblin Entertainment/Universal Studios

Best director

This is another hard one to call, although this time perhaps because of my own personal bias. I would love to see Steven Spielberg picking up this award for his semi-autobiographical film The Fabelmans; it seems bizarre to me that Spielberg has only won two directing Oscars, the last one was more than 20 years ago, in 1999. However, the momentum seems to be on the side of directing duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinart, known collectively as the Daniels, who are behind Everything Everywhere All At Once. If they do take it, they will be the third pair to ever win best director.

You can watch the Academy Awards on Sunday 12 March from 11pm exclusively on Sky News and Sky Showcase. For everything you need to know ahead of the ceremony, listen to our special Oscars Backstage podcast – and don’t miss our winners episode from Monday morning

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Grammy-winning R&B and soul star D’Angelo dies after ‘prolonged battle with cancer’

Published

on

By

Grammy-winning R&B and soul star D'Angelo dies after 'prolonged battle with cancer'

Grammy-award winning R&B and soul singer D’Angelo has died following a battle with pancreatic cancer, his family has said.

He died on Tuesday, leaving behind a “legacy of extraordinarily moving music” following a “prolonged and courageous battle with cancer,” his family said in a statement.

The prominent musician, born Michael D’Angelo Archer, was 51 years old.

A family statement said: “We are saddened that he can only leave dear memories with his family, but we are eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind.

“We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time, but invite you all join us in mourning his passing while also celebrating the gift of song that he has left for the world.”

The singer rose to prominence in the 1990s with his first album, Brown Sugar.

The track “Lady” from that album reached No. 10 in March 1996 and remained on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for 20 weeks.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Eurovision emergency vote on Israel’s inclusion is called off

Published

on

By

Eurovision emergency vote on Israel's inclusion is called off

An emergency vote on Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest has been called off following developments in the Middle East, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has said.

Contest organisers had scheduled “an extraordinary meeting of [its] general assembly to be held online” in early November after several countries said they would no longer take part in Eurovision if Israel participated.

The EBU said in a statement that following “recent developments in the Middle East” the executive board had agreed on Monday that there should be an in-person discussion among members “on the issue of participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026”.

It said the matter had now been added to the agenda of its winter general assembly, which will take place in December.

Further details about the session would be shared with EBU members in the coming weeks, it added.

It is not clear if a vote will still take place at a later date.

Austria is hosting next year’s show in Vienna. The country’s national broadcaster, ORF, told Reuters news agency it welcomed the EBU’s decision.

Sky News has contacted Israeli broadcaster KAN for comment.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Will Eurovision boycott Israel?

Faced with controversy over the conflict in Gaza, Eurovision – which labels itself a non-political event – had said member countries would vote on whether Israel should or shouldn’t take part.

Slovenia and broadcasters from Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland and Iceland had all issued statements saying if Israel was allowed to enter, they’d consider boycotting the contest.

As one of the “Big Five” backers of Eurovision, Spain’s decision to leave the competition would have a significant financial impact on the event – which is the world’s largest live singing competition.

In September, a letter from EBU president Delphine Ernotte Cunci, said “given that the union has never faced a divisive situation like this before” the board agreed it “merited a broader democratic basis for a decision”.

Read more:
Why Eurovision vote on Israel might not stop boycott
Could Eurovision boycott lead to a competition crisis?

On Monday, Palestinian militant group Hamas freed the last living Israeli hostages from Gaza, and Israel released busloads of Palestinian detainees, under a ceasefire deal aimed at bringing an end to the two-year war in the Middle East.

The war began when Hamas stormed into Israel on October 7 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage.

Israel invaded Gaza in retaliation, with airstrikes and ground assaults devastating much of the enclave and killing more than 67,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Its figures do not differentiate between civilians and combatants but it says around half of those killed were women and children.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Diane Keaton, star of Annie Hall and The Godfather, has died aged 79 – US media reports

Published

on

By

Diane Keaton, star of Annie Hall and The Godfather, has died aged 79 - US media reports

Actress Diane Keaton, who starred in films including The Godfather and Annie Hall, has died, reports have said.

People reported her death at the age of 79, citing a family spokesperson.

The magazine said she died in California with loved ones but no other details were immediately available, and representatives for Keaton did not immediately respond to inquiries from The Associated Press news agency.

Keaton’s death was also reported by the New York Times newspaper which said it has spoken to Dori Roth, who produced a number of Keaton’s most recent films, who confirmed she had died but did not provide any details about the circumstances.

With a long career, across a series of movies that are regarded as some of the best ever made, Keaton was widely admired.

She was awarded an Oscar, a BAFTA and two Golden Globe Awards, and was also nominated for two Emmys, and a Tony, as well as picking up a series of other Academy Award and BAFTA nominations.

Diane Keaton, with her best actress Oscar for 'Annie Hall' in 1978. Pic: AP
Image:
Diane Keaton, with her best actress Oscar for ‘Annie Hall’ in 1978. Pic: AP

Her best actress Oscar was for the Woody Allen film Annie Hall, which is said to be loosely based on her life.

More from Ents & Arts

She appeared in several other Allen projects, including Manhattan, as well as all three Godfather movies, in which she played Kay, the wife and then ex-wife of Marlon Brando’s son Michael Corleone, played by Al Pacino, opposite him as he descends into a life of crime and replaces his father in the family’s mafia empire.

‘Brilliant, beautiful’

The unexpected news was met with shock around the world.

Her First Wives Club co-star Bette Midler wrote on Instagram: “The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died. I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me.

“She was hilarious, a complete original, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she was … oh, la, lala!”

Actor Ben Stiller paid tribute on X, writing: “Diane Keaton. One of the greatest film actors ever. An icon of style, humor and comedy. Brilliant. What a person.”

Keaton was the kind of actor who helped make films iconic and timeless, from her “La-dee-da, la-dee-da” phrasing as Annie Hall, bedecked in the iconic necktie, bowler hat, vest and khakis, to her heartbreaking turn as Kay Adams, the woman unfortunate enough to join the Corleone family.

Keaton also frequently worked with Nancy Meyers, starting with 1987’s Baby Boom.

Their other films together included 1991’s Father of the Bride and its 1995 sequel, as well as 2003’s Something’s Gotta Give.

In 1996 she starred opposite Goldie Hawn and Midler in The First Wives Club, about three women whose husbands had left them for younger women.

More recently she collaborated with Jane Fonda, Mary Steenburgen and Candice Bergen on the Book Club films.

Keaton never married. She adopted a daughter, Dexter, in 1996 and a son, Duke, four years later.

Sky News has contacted Keaton’s agent for a comment.

Continue Reading

Trending