Oscars take the stage overnight with best picture up for grabs

Winners of the gold Oscar statuettes are chosen by the roughly 11,000 actors, producers, directors and film craftspeople who make up the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Behind the glitz, Hollywood is fighting a battle to keep its place at the centre of the global film business. None of the 10 best picture contenders were filmed in Los Angeles, home to most major film companies for more than a century.

Music and surprises

Supporting actor nominee Kieran Culkin is the favourite for his role as a man who travels with his cousin to Poland to study family history in A Real Pain.

Best actor could go to either Chalamet or The Brutalist star Adrien Brody, according to awards experts.

Brody became the youngest best actor winner when he landed the prize at age 29 for The Pianist in 2002. Chalamet is nine months younger than Brody was at the time.

Best actress is widely expected to go to Moore for The Substance, though one pundit said the category could produce an upset win for Brazil’s Fernanda Torres of I’m Still Here. The academy has increased its international membership, which could favour Torres, said Ian Sandwell, movies editor at Digital Spy.

“She could well be a surprise and the only one to take it away from Demi on the night,” Sandwell said.

Producers scrapped the annual tradition of having musicians perform each of the nominated original songs, saying they wanted to focus instead on the songwriters.

They do promise many musical moments, including a performance by Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo and a tribute to music producer Quincy Jones, who died in November.

Also, expect some previously unannounced guests.

“We absolutely love the element of surprise,” executive producer Raj Kapoor said.

Reuters