Oscar night is over, and like all other reviewers, Russ and Rich had their own picks for who would and who should win Oscars. They have different tastes, but when it comes down to the best of the best, Russ and Rich are rarely that far apart. See who was better at predicting the winners after the show February 26.
Best Picture
- Arrival
- Fences
- Hacksaw Ridge
- Hell or High Water
- Hidden Figures
- La La Land
- Lion
- Manchester by the Sea
- Moonlight
Russ: La La Land (Lion should win)
Rich: La La Land (Hidden Figures should win)
Actor in a Leading Role
- Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)
- Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge)
- Ryan Gosling (La La Land)
- Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic)
- Denzel Washington (Fences)
Russ: Casey Affleck (Andrew Garfield should win)
Rich: Casey Affleck (Viggo Mortensen should win)
Actress in a Leading Role
- Isabelle Huppert (Elle)
- Ruth Negga (Loving)
- Natalie Portman (Jackie)
- Emma Stone (La La Land)
- Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins)
Russ: Emma Stone (Emma Stone should win)
Rich: Emma Stone (Natalie Portman should win)
Actor in a Supporting Role
- Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)
- Jeff Bridges (Hell or High Water)
- Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea)
- Dev Patel (Lion)
- Michael Shannon (Nocturnal Animals)
Russ: Mahershala Ali (Michael Shannon should win)
Rich: Mahershala Ali (Dev Patel should win)
Actress in a Supporting Role
- Viola Davis (Fences)
- Naomie Harris (Moonlight)
- Nicole Kidman (Lion)
- Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures)
- Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea)
Russ: Viola Davis (Octavia Spencer should win)
Rich: Viola Davis (Octavia Spencer should win).
Animated Feature Film
- Kubo and the Two Strings
- Moana
- My Life as a Zucchini
- The Red Turtle
- Zootopia
Russ: Kubo and the Two Strings (Moana should win).
Rich: Kubo and the Two Strings (Moana should win).
Cinematography
- Arrival
- La La Land
- Lion
- Moonlight
- Silence
Russ: La La Land (Lion should win)
Rich: La La Land (Lion should win)
Costume Design
- Allied
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
- Florence Foster Jenkins
- Jackie
- La La Land
Russ: La La Land (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them should win)
Rich: La La Land (Jackie should win)
Directing
- Denis Villeneuve (Arrival)
- Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge)
- Damien Chazelle (La La Land)
- Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea)
- Barry Jenkins (Moonlight)
Russ: Damien Chazelle (Mel Gibson should win)
Rich: Damien Chazelle (Mel Gibson should win)
Documentary Feature
- 13th
- Fire at Sea
- I Am Not Your Negro
- Life, Animated
- O.J.: Made in America
Russ: O.J.: Made in America (I Am Not Your Negro should win)
Rich: O.J.: Made in America (O.J.: Made in America should win)
Documentary Short Subject
- 4.1 Miles
- Extremis
- Joe’s Violin
- The White Helmets
- Watani: My Homeland
Russ: Extremis (Extremis should win)
Rich: Extremis (Extremis should win)
Film Editing
- Arrival
- Hacksaw Ridge
- Hell or High Water
- La La Land
- Moonlight
Russ: La La Land (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Rich: La La Land (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Foreign Language Film
- A Man Called Ove
- Land of Mine
- Tanna
- The Salesman
- Toni Erdmann
Russ: A Man Called Ove (A Man Called Ove should win)
Rich: Toni Erdmann (A Man Called Ove should win)
Makeup and Hairstyling
- A Man Called Ove
- Star Trek Beyond
- Suicide Squad
Russ: Star Trek Beyond (Suicide Squad should win)
Rich: Star Trek Beyond (A Man Called Ove should win)
Music — Original Score
- Nicholas Britell (Moonlight)
- Justin Hurwitz (La La Land)
- Mica Levi (Jackie)
- Thomas Newman (Passengers)
- Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka (Lion)
Russ: Justin Hurwitz (Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka should win)
Rich: Justin Hurwitz (Justin Hurwitz should win)
Music — Original Song
- “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” (La La Land)
- “Can’t Stop the Feeling” (Trolls)
- “City of Stars” (La La Land)
- “How Far I’ll Go” (Moana)
- “The Empty Chair” (Jim: The James Foley Story)
Russ: “City of Stars” (“How Far I’ll Go” should win)
Rich: “City of Stars” (“How Far I’ll Go” should win)
Production Design
- Arrival
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
- Hail, Caesar!
- La La Land
- Passengers
Russ: La La Land (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them should win)
Rich: La La Land (Passengers should win)
Short Film — Animated
- Blind Vaysha
- Borrowed Time
- Pear Cider and Cigarettes
- Pearl
- Piper
Russ: Piper (Piper should win)
Rich: Piper (Piper should win)
Short Film — Live Action
- Ennemis Intérieurs
- Le Femme et le TGV
- Silent Nights
- Sing
- Timecode
Russ: Ennemis Intérieurs (Ennemis Intérieurs should win)
Rich: Ennemis Intérieurs (Ennemis Intérieurs should win)
Sound Editing
- Arrival
- Deepwater Horizon
- Hacksaw Ridge
- La La Land
- Sully
Russ: Hacksaw Ridge (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Rich: Hacksaw Ridge (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Sound Mixing
- 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
- Arrival
- Hacksaw Ridge
- La La Land
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Russ: La La Land (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Rich: La La Land (Hacksaw Ridge should win)
Visual Effects
- Deepwater Horizon
- Doctor Strange
- Kubo and the Two Strings
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
- The Jungle Book
Russ: The Jungle Book (The Jungle Book should win)
Rich: The Jungle Book (The Jungle Book should win)
Writing — Adapted Screenplay
- Arrival
- Fences
- Hidden Figures
- Lion
- Moonlight
Russ: Hidden Figures (Lion should win)
Rich: Moonlight (Lion should win)
Writing — Original Screenplay
- 20th Century Women
- Hell or High Water
- La La Land
- Manchester by the Sea
- The Lobster
Russ: Manchester by the Sea (Manchester by the Sea should win)
Rich: Manchester by the Sea (Hell or High Water should win)
This was a surprise year for the Oscars in more ways than one. Many of the award winners were major upsets, and that clearly hurt the predictions. We’ll have to get better next year. The final tally is as follows:
Rich correctly predicted 14 of 24 (58%). Russ correctly predicted 13 of 24 (54%). After several ties, Rich gets the gold this year, but barely so. See you next year.