Oscars 2026: What to expect, how to watch and who will win

## Summary
Oscars 2026: What to expect, how to watch and who will win 14 minutes ago Share Save Steven McIntosh Entertainment reporter Share Save Getty Images Irish actress Jessie Buckley is the favourite to win best actress for her performance in Hamnet Hollywood stars are gearing up for Sunday night's Oscars, in an exciting year for the awards race where several categories are too close to call. How to watch the Oscars 2026 Getty Images Conan O'Brien is returning to host after his successful stint in 2025 The Academy Awards will be broadcast on ITV in the UK, with red carpet coverage starting at 22:15 GMT before the ceremony kicks off at 23:00 GMT. Getty Images One Battle After Another stars Teyana Taylor (left) and Chase Infiniti (right) with director Paul Thomas Anderson There might be 10 films nominated for best picture, but the race for the top category has boiled down to two films - political thriller One Battle After Another and vampire horror Sinners. A new casting category Getty Images Sean Penn, pictured with co-star Benicio del Toro, is the favourite to win best supporting actor Five of the films nominated for best picture this year have an additional nomination in the newly created casting category.

## Article Content
Oscars 2026: What to expect, how to watch and who will win
14 minutes ago
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Steven McIntosh
Entertainment reporter
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Getty Images
Irish actress Jessie Buckley is the favourite to win best actress for her performance in Hamnet
Hollywood stars are gearing up for Sunday night's Oscars, in an exciting year for the awards race where several categories are too close to call.
Political thriller One Battle After Another is the favourite to win best picture, but it faces tough competition from vampire horror Sinners, which has a record-breaking 16 nominations.
Irish star Jessie Buckley is considered the firm frontrunner to win best actress for her performance in Hamnet.
But the other acting races are tighter, with stars such as Michael B Jordan, Timothée Chalamet, Amy Madigan, Wunmi Mosaku and Sean Penn all in contention.
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Here's everything you need to know ahead of Sunday's ceremony.
How to watch the Oscars 2026
Getty Images
Conan O'Brien is returning to host after his successful stint in 2025
The Academy Awards will be broadcast on ITV in the UK, with red carpet coverage starting at 22:15 GMT before the ceremony kicks off at 23:00 GMT.
The unusually early start is down to a combination of the ceremony being an hour earlier than it used to be, as well as the clocks having already changed in the US but not the UK.
For US viewers, the ceremony begins at 16:00 PT / 19:00 ET, and can be watched on ABC and streamed on Hulu.
Who is presenting the Oscars?
Conan O'Brien
is returning to hosting duties this year, after a barnstorming performance in 2025 where he performed comedic musical numbers and affectionately roasted the nominees in his opening monologue.
Several guest stars have also been enlisted to give out some of the statuettes throughout the night.
Actors who appear in some of this year's major films but weren't nominated individually have been invited to present awards, such as
Paul Mescal
(Hamnet),
Chase Infiniti
(One Battle After Another) and
Gwyneth Paltrow
(Marty Supreme).
Other category presenters will include
Nicole Kidman, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Robert Downey Jr, Anne Hathaway
and
Chris Evans,
as well as last year's quartet of acting winners -
Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison, Kieran Culkin
and
Zoe Saldaña.
Which films are the frontrunners?
Getty Images
One Battle After Another stars Teyana Taylor (left) and Chase Infiniti (right) with director Paul Thomas Anderson
There might be 10 films nominated for best picture, but the race for the top category has boiled down to two films - political thriller One Battle After Another and vampire horror Sinners.
One Battle is the clear frontrunner after a string of big wins at precursor ceremonies, and its director Paul Thomas Anderson is widely predicted to finally win his first Oscar for directing.
But there is also huge passion within the Academy for Sinners. Director Ryan Coogler is widely respected for what he was able to pull off with the film, which has a whopping 16 nominations. Don't bet against a Sinners surprise on the night.
A close best actor race
Getty Images
Sinners star Michael B Jordan and ballet sceptic Timothée Chalamet are considered the two best actor frontrunners
Best actor is one of the most interesting acting races this year, and in recent weeks has been veering all over the place like a broken shopping trolley.
The Golden Globes went with The Secret Agent's
Wagner Moura
from its drama category and Marty Supreme's
Timothée Chalamet
for musical or comedy, a prize the 30-year-old also won at the Critics Choice Awards.
Bafta threw us a real curveball, opting for I Swear's
Robert Aramayo
, who isn't even nominated at the Oscars (the film hasn't yet been released in the US), while the Actor Awards went with Sinners star
Michael B Jordan
.
The late surge of momentum for Jordan puts him in a strong position ahead of the Oscars, but this is a wobbly and wide open category.
Best actress is much easier to predict, with
Jessie Buckley
almost certain to win for Hamnet after dominating the category throughout awards season.
Supporting stars
Getty Images
Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners) and Amy Madigan (Weapons) are both strong in the supporting actress category
Last year's supporting actor and actress races were fairly predictable - with Culkin and Saldaña sweeping the two categories across the season.
In contrast, this year's supporting races have been a rollercoaster ride. Frankenstein's
Jacob Elordi
won best supporting actor at the Critics Choice Awards, while Sentimental Value's
Stellan Skarsgård
picked up the Golden Globe.
However, in recent weeks, things have started to coalesce around One Battle After Another's
Sean Penn
. His portrayal of white supremacist Colonel Lockjaw has seen him take the trophy at the Bafta and Actor Awards - two key precursors.
Supporting actress has been even more split. One Battle's
Teyana Taylor
took th

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- The late surge of momentum for Jordan puts him in a strong position ahead of the Oscars, but this is a wobbly and wide open category.
- Supporting stars Getty Images Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners) and Amy Madigan (Weapons) are both strong in the supporting actress category Last year's supporting actor and actress races were fairly predictable - with Culkin and Saldaña sweeping the two categories across the season.
- Madigan got a boost of momentum with a win at the Actor Awards, but Taylor and Mosaku have the advantage of both appearing in best picture-nominated films.
- Read more awards season coverage: Michael B Jordan upends Oscars race as Sinners wins big at Actor Awards Hamnet's Jessie Buckley and I Swear's Robert Aramayo win big at the Baftas Chalamet beats DiCaprio to Golden Globes glory Timothée shouts out Kylie at Critics' Choice Awards Frankenstein is monster success at Venice film festival DiCaprio on why his new film addresses 'divisiveness in our culture' Emma Stone dazzles Venice with alien kidnap drama Vampire film Sinners breaks Oscar nominations record Could Oscar glory be next for Jessie Buckley and Hamnet?

### Areas for Consideration
- That'll become less of an issue when the Oscars moves to YouTube in 2029, without the tight time restrictions and commercial breaks that come with terrestrial television.

### Implications
- Oscars 2026: What to expect, how to watch and who will win 14 minutes ago Share Save Steven McIntosh Entertainment reporter Share Save Getty Images Irish actress Jessie Buckley is the favourite to win best actress for her performance in Hamnet Hollywood stars are gearing up for Sunday night's Oscars, in an exciting year for the awards race where several categories are too close to call.
- How to watch the Oscars 2026 Getty Images Conan O'Brien is returning to host after his successful stint in 2025 The Academy Awards will be broadcast on ITV in the UK, with red carpet coverage starting at 22:15 GMT before the ceremony kicks off at 23:00 GMT.
- Other category presenters will include Nicole Kidman, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Robert Downey Jr, Anne Hathaway and Chris Evans, as well as last year's quartet of acting winners - Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison, Kieran Culkin and Zoe Saldaña.
- Getty Images One Battle After Another stars Teyana Taylor (left) and Chase Infiniti (right) with director Paul Thomas Anderson There might be 10 films nominated for best picture, but the race for the top category has boiled down to two films - political thriller One Battle After Another and vampire horror Sinners.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers oscars, awards, best topics. Notable strengths include discussion of oscars. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 1716.