Chasing the Gold: Ryan McQuade’s 2022 Oscar Nomination Predictions

It’s all come to this. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce tomorrow their nominations for the 2022 Oscars. This year’s nominees look to feature tons of familiar faces to the Academy, as many of the films that were suppose to come out last year were delayed due to COVID-19. But there is still the possibility for some surprises, as 2021 was a rather strong year for cinema on the whole, where we discovered new and emerging artists who moved us. And while the discourse surrounding many of these titles has been hostile online, we have to remember that the Academy has final say and they are ultimately picking the films that just worked the best for them.

Going into the final stretch of the nomination phase of the season, we’ve seen Belfast, Dune, The Power of the Dog, West Side Story show up with a lot of love throughout the season with critics groups and guild nominations, thus showcasing a good balance of inside and outside industry support. I expect these films to still have strong mornings tomorrow, though each film could have either a addition or miss that will shock people, questioning where they are at in the race. For proof of that, look at the BAFTA nominations, as they provided that right amount of doubt and chaos needed for this season, thus providing so much anxiety to many Oscar pundits with their final predictions. And with tight races in Best Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography and more, these nominations could be the jolt of energy in what has been a long, similar Oscar season, given the fact that the same films have shown up everywhere. There is nothing wrong with a little variety, and makes these predictions a lot harder and so much more fun. With that, here is how I think it will go down.

Best Picture

• Belfast
• CODA
• Don’t Look Up
• Drive My Car
• Dune
• House of Gucci
• Licorice Pizza
• King Richard
• The Power of the Dog
• West Side Story

Best Director

• Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog
• Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza
• Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Drive My Car
• Steven Spielberg, West Side Story
• Denis Villeneuve, Dune

Best Actor

• Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog
• Leonardo DiCaprio, Don’t Look Up
• Andrew Garfield, tick…tick…BOOM
• Will Smith, King Richard
• Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth

Best Actress

• Penelope Cruz, Parallel Mothers
• Lady Gaga, House of Gucci
• Alana Haim, Licorice Pizza
• Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos
• Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter

Best Supporting Actor

• Bradley Cooper, Licorice Pizza
• Troy Kotsur, CODA
• Jared Leto, House of Gucci
• Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog
• Jesse Plemons, The Power of the Dog

Best Supporting Actress

• Caitriona Balfe, Belfest
• Ariana DeBose, West Side Story
• Kristen Dunst, The Power of the Dog
• Aunjanue Ellis, King Richard
• Ruth Negga, Passing

Best Original Screenplay

• Being the Ricardos
• Belfast
• Don’t Look Up
• The French Dispatch
• Licorice Pizza

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Coda
• Drive My Car
• Dune
• The Lost Daughter
• The Power of the Dog
  

Best Animated Film

• Belle
• Encanto
• Flee
• Luca
• Sing 2

Best Documentary

• Ascension
• Faya Dayi
• Procession
• The Rescue
• Summer of Soul

Best International Feature

• Drive My Car
• The Hand of God
• A Hero
• Prayers For The Stolen
• The Worst Person in the World

Best Cinematography

• Dune
• Nightmare Alley
• The Power of the Dog
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• West Side Story

Best Film Editing

• Belfast
• Don’t Look Up
• Dune
• Licorice Pizza
• The Power of the Dog

Best Production Design

• Dune
• The French Dispatch
• Nightmare Alley
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• West Side Story

Best Costume Design

• Cruella
• Cyrano
• Dune
• House of Gucci
• Licorice Pizza

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

• Dune
• Coming 2 America
• Cruella
• The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• House of Gucci

Best Sound

• Belfast
• Dune
• No Time to Die
• The Power of the Dog
• West Side Story

Best Visual Effects

• Dune
• Godzilla vs Kong
• The Matrix Resurrections
• No Time to Die
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Best Original Score

• Dune
• Don’t Look Up
• The French Dispatch
• The Green Knight
• The Power of the Dog

Best Original Song

• “Be Alive” – King Richard
• “Beyond the Shore” – CODA
•  “Dos Oruguitas” – Encanto
• ​”No Time to Die” – No Time to Die
• “Somehow You Do” – Four Good Days

Check back in a couple of a days where we will have a new episode of Chasing the Gold to go over nominations for the 2022 Academy Awards.