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Cillian Murohy and Robert Downey Jr. in “Oppenheimer”

Photo: Melinda Sue Gordon / Universal Pictures

“Barbie” versus “Oppenheimer,” that was the duel of the cinema summer.

On Sunday evening, Christopher Nolan's atomic bomb epic is in a class of its own: With 13 nominations, "Oppenheimer" is the big favorite going into this year's Oscars.

This is followed by Yorgos Lanthimos' feminism farce "Poor Things" with eleven nominations and Martin Scorsese's true crime thriller "Killers of the Flower Moon" with ten.

And “Barbie”?

Has to settle for eight nominations, including two for best song.

Both performers, Billie Eilish (“What Was I Made For?”) and Ryan Gosling (“I’m Just Ken”), will sing their songs live.

At least in terms of entertainment value, “Barbie” should be the big winner of the evening.

A year ago, Edward Berger went home with four Oscars for “Nothing New in the West.”

Many German creatives have also been considered by the Academy in 2024: Sandra Hülser is in the running for best leading actress for “Anatomy of a Case”.

The German directors Ilker Catak and Wim Wenders are competing for the best international film: Catak is there for Germany with “The Teacher’s Room”, Wenders for Japan with “Perfect Days”.

But is it really enough for one of the films?

On Sunday evening we will report on the gala - with our reporter Marc Pitzke on site in Los Angeles and the live ticker from the editorial team.

Here you can find all the nominees - and our prediction for the winners.

Best Original Screenplay:

  • Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for “Anatomy of a Case” – Read a recommendation here

  • David Hemingson for “The Holdovers”

  • Bradley Cooper and Josh Singer for “Maestro”

  • Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik for “May December”

  • Celine Song for »Past Lives« - Read about Song's outstanding debut film here 

And the Oscar goes to...

Justine Triet and Arthur Harari (“Anatomy of a Case”)


Did she kill him or not?

The French drama about a woman accused of murdering her husband leaves you wondering, long after the verdict, what you can ever know about a relationship from the outside.

The writing couple Triet and Harari have already won the Golden Globe, Bafta and César, and the Oscar will be hard to take away from them.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

  • Cord Jefferson for “American Fiction”

  • Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach for “Barbie” – Read a review here 

  • Christopher Nolan for “Oppenheimer”

  • Tony McNamara for “Poor Things” – Read a review here 

  • Jonathan Glazer for “The Zone of Interest” – Read about the film’s premiere in Cannes here 

And the Oscar goes to...

Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach for "Barbie"


The other writing couple alongside Triet and Harari, Gerwig and Baumbach, have strong competition from the US satire "American Fiction", but "Barbie" is likely to be internationally successful have more fans.

Best camera:

  • "El Conde" (Edward Lachman)

  • »Killers of the Flower Moon« (Rodrigo Prieto) – Read a review after the premiere in Cannes here 

  • "Maestro" (Matthew Libatique)

  • “Oppenheimer” (Hoyte van Hoytema)

  • “Poor Things” (Robbie Ryan)

And the Oscar goes to...

“Oppenheimer” (Hoyte van Hoytema)


In 2018, Hoytema was nominated once for a film by Christopher Nolan, back then for “Dunkirk”.

This time he should be able to go home with the Oscar for “Oppenheimer”: between opulence and intimacy, black and white and color, Hoytema showcases everything that cinema has to offer.

Best production design:

  • “Barbie” (Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer)

  • “Killers of the Flower Moon” (Jack Fisk and Adam Willis)

  • »Napoleon« (Arthur Max and Claire Kaufman) - Read an interview with director Ridley Scott here 

  • “Oppenheimer” (Ruth DeJong and Claire Kaufmann)

  • “Poor Things” (Shona Heath, James Price and Szusza Mihalek)

And the Oscar goes to...

"Barbie"


The Baftas, the British film awards, are often seen as a benchmark for the craft categories.

“Poor Things” won in Great Britain for production design, costumes, make-up and cinematography and would actually be the favorite.

Nevertheless, at the Oscars, also because of the expected dominance of “Oppenheimer” in the main categories, the deciding factor will be the pink Barbie scenes, which are more popular in the USA.

Best Costume Design:

  • “Barbie” (Jacqueline Durran)

  • “Killers of the Flower Moon” (Jaqueline West)

  • “Napoleon” (David Crossman, Janty Yates)

  • “Oppenheimer” (Ellen Mirojnick)

  • »Poor Things« (Holly Waddington) – Read a review after the premiere in Venice here 

And the Oscar goes to...


Giving the Oscar to

"Poor Things" Barbie's dress-up doll designs from Mattel might be a bit too commercial for the Academy, despite all the enthusiasm for the popular.

Good chances for Emma Stone's stunning costumes in Victorian Radical Chic.

Designer Holly Waddington (“Lady Macbeth”) could win her first Oscar.

Best sound:

  • »The Creator« (Ian Voigt, Erik Aadahl, Ethan Van der Ryn, Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic)

  • “Maestro” (Steven A. Morrow, Richard King, Jason Ruder, Tom Ozanic, Dean Zupancic)

  • »Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One« (Chris Munro, James H. Mather, Chris Burdon, Mark Taylor)

  • “Oppenheimer” (Willie Burton, Richard King, Gary A. Rizzo, Kevin O'Connell)

  • “The Zone of Interest” (Tam Willers, Johnnie Burn)

And the Oscar goes to...

»Oppenheimer«.


Sound design has rarely made such a difference to a film as in the case of “The Zone of Interest” – director Jonathan Glazer described the work of Tam Willers and Johnnie Burn as an equal film.

But Christopher Nolan's bombast cinema cannot do without bombast sound - and because Nolan's films have already won five Oscars for best sound, Oscar No. 6 should follow here.

Best cut:

  • “Anatomy of a Case” (Laurent Sénéchal)

  • “The Holdovers” (Kevin Trent)

  • “Killers of the Flower Moon” (Thelma Schoonmaker)

  • “Oppenheimer” (Jennifer Lame)

  • “Poor Things” (Yorgos Mavropsaridis)

And the Oscar goes to...

»Oppenheimer«.


A film about the man-made end of the world that also lasts three hours - the fact that "Oppenheimer" could become a blockbuster in 2023 was also due to Jennifer Lame's virtuoso, condensed editing.

She has also worked with Nolan: “Tenet” was not yet enough for an Oscar.

It should prevail in 2024.

Best Visual Effects:

  • »The Creator« – Read a review here 

  • “Godzilla Minus One”

  • »Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3«

  • »Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One«

  • "Napoleon"

And the Oscar goes to...

"Godzilla Minus One"


At US augurs, the Japanese surprise success "Godzilla Minus One" is considered set; at just under 15 million dollars, it has a surprisingly low budget for an action film.

But the android ballad “The Creator” by Gareth Edwards deserved the Oscar more.

The film wasn't entirely convincing in terms of content, but it created an impressively original science fiction world using visual effects.

Best Makeup and Hairstyles:

  • »Golda« (Karen Hartley Thomas, Suzi Battersby, Ashra Kelly-Blue)

  • “Maestro” (Kazu Hiro, Kay Georgiou, Lori McCoy-Bell) – Read a review here 

  • “Oppenheimer” (Luisa Abel, Jason Hamer, Jaime Leigh McIntosh, Ahou Mofid)

  • “Poor Things” (Nadia Stacey, Mark Couler, Josh Weston)

  • “The Snow Company” (Ana López-Puigcerver, David Martí and Montse Ribé)

And the Oscar goes to...

"Maestro" (Kazu Hiro, Kay Georgiou, Lori McCoy-Bell)


No body part has been more discussed this Oscar year than Bradley Cooper's nose - or rather the prosthesis he has in his role as Leonard Bernstein.

This looks particularly tacked on in the black and white scenes of “Maestro”.

But how the team around the legendary make-up artist Kazu Hiro manages to age Cooper over the years ultimately impresses much more than the controversial Zinken.

Best song:

  • "The Fire Inside" by Diane Warren in "Flamin' Hot"

  • "I'm Just Ken" by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt in "Barbie"

  • “It Never Went Away” by Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson in “American Symphony”

  • “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” by Scott George in “Flowers of the Killers Moon”

  • “What Was I Made For” by Billie Eilish in “Barbie”

And the Oscar goes to...

"Barbie", one way or another.


The only question is whether Billie Eilish and brother Finneas will prevail again with their ballad “What Was I Made For” – the two have already won the Grammy for best song of the year.

Or Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, steals the show, as threatened to happen in the film.

Best film music:

  • »American Fiction« (Laura Karpman)

  • “Indiana Jones and the Wheel of Fortune” (John Williams)

  • “Killer of the Flower Moon” (Robbie Robetson)

  • “Oppenheimer” (Ludwig Göransson)

  • “Poor Things” (Jerskin Fendrix)

And the Oscar goes to...

»Oppenheimer«


Hardly anything can beat Ludwig Göransson's powerful score, which has already won almost all the important prizes.

Unless the Academy has a heart for the fantastic blues groove that the late Robbie Robertson left to his friend Martin Scorsese for "Killers Of The Flower Moon."

Best Animated Feature Film:

  • “The Boy and the Heron” – Read here why the film was the big conclusion to Hayao Miyazaki’s career 

  • »Elemental«

  • »Nimona«

  • »Robot Dreams«

  • »Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse« – Read a review here

And the Oscar goes to...

"Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse"


Thanks to sheer visual power, no other film opened up more opportunities and perspectives for the superhero genre, which is stuck in a creative dead end.

But of course you can always expect a nod to Maestro Miyazaki.

Best Animated Short Film:

  • »Letter to a Pig«

  • »Ninty-five Senses«

  • »Our Uniform«

  • “Pachyderms”

  • »War is Over!

    Inspired by the Music by John and Yoko«

And the Oscar goes to...

»War is Over!

Inspired by the Music by John and Yoko"


"Letter to a Pig," in which a Holocaust survivor writes a letter of thanks to the pig to which he owes his life, may be more artistically valuable.

But it's hard to win against John, Yoko and the brave carrier pigeon who plays a game of chess across enemy lines in "War Is Over!".

Especially since director Dave Mullins is an accomplished Pixar pupil who shoots for large audiences.

Best short film:

  • »The After«

  • »Invincible«

  • »Ridder Lykke (Knight of Fortune)«

  • »Red, White and Blue«

  • »I see something you don't see (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar)« - Read a review here 

And the Oscar goes to...

"I see something you don't see (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar)"


Behind the long title lies a very well-known name: Wes Anderson is responsible for the film adaptation of a short story by Roald Dahl.

Anderson has been nominated for an Oscar seven times, for best screenplay, best director, best film and best animated film.

He probably wouldn't have thought that after all these years he would win for the best short film.

But for the master of the box film, it is perhaps the most fitting prize of all.

Best Documentary:

  • »20 days in Mariupol«

  • »Bobi Wine: The People's President«

  • "The Infinite Memory"

  • “Olfa’s Daughters”

  • "To Kill a Tiger"

And the Oscar goes to...

"20 Days in Mariupol"


This year's Oscar gala will probably try to avoid politics - the potential for excitement surrounding Israel and Gaza is too great.

But the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine will be remembered: Mstyslav Chernov's film about the siege of the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol will most likely win - and the atrocities of the Russian invasion will be brought back into the collective memory.

By the way, the film is available in the ARD media library. 

Best documentary short film:

  • “The ABCs

    of Book Banning

    ”

  • »The Barber of Little Rock«

  • »Island in Between«

  • »The Last Repair Shop«

  • »Nai Nai and Wai Po«

And the Oscar goes to...

"The Last Repair Shop"


The "Los Angeles Times" has followed the example of the "New York Times" and is now submitting its high-quality video reports as short documentaries to the Oscars - with the greatest possible success this year.

For “The Last Repair Shop,” the journalists from the “LA Times” looked around an old warehouse in Los Angeles where school musical instruments are not only stored, but also repaired.

Watch the film here. 

Best International Feature Film:

  • Germany (“The Teacher’s Room”) – Read an interview with director İlker Çatak here 

  • Italy (“Io Capitano”)

  • Great Britain (“The Zone of Interest”) – Read about the real historical background here 

  • Spain (“The Snow Company”)

  • Japan (“Perfect Days”) – Read a review of the film by Wim Wenders here  

And the Oscar goes to...

Great Britain (“The Zone of Interest”)


Two German directors nominated in the same year: This has never happened before in this category.

The point of the evening will be that a German-language film will win that is not made by a German and was not submitted by Germany.

Jonathan Glazer's epochal Auschwitz film "The Zone of Interest" will deservedly receive an Oscar.

The best supporting actress:

  • Emily Blunt (“Oppenheimer”)

  • Da’Vine Joy Randolph (»The Holdovers«)

  • Danielle Brooks (»The Color Purple«)

  • Jodie Foster (»Nyad«)

  • America Ferrera (»Barbie«)

And the Oscar goes to... Da’Vine Joy Randolph
Die Broadway-Darstellerin ist eine Oscar-Newcomerin, aber der Preis wird ihr kaum zu nehmen sein, auch nicht durch starke Konkurrentinnen wie Jodie Foster (in ihrer ersten offen lesbischen Rolle) oder Grammy- und Tony-Gewinnerin Danielle Brooks. Als melancholische, aber warmherzige Köchin Mary Lamb ist Randolph unbestreitbar das Herz und die Seele der Überwinterungs-Farce »The Holdovers«.

Bester Nebendarsteller:

  • Ryan Gosling (»Barbie«)

  • Robert De Niro (»Killers of the Flower Moon«)

  • Robert Downey Jr. (»Oppenheimer«)

  • Mark Ruffalo (»Poor Things«)

  • Sterling K. Brown (»American Fiction«)

And the Oscar goes to... Robert Downey Jr. (»Oppenheimer«)
Nach einem gefühlt halben Leben als Iron Man im Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) hätte man fast vergessen, dass Robert Downey Jr. auch anders als Superheld kann und zuvor schon zwei Mal für den Oscar nominiert war – das erste Mal 1993 für seine Rolle als Charlie Chaplin in »Chaplin - Das Leben der unsterblichen Filmlegende«, 2009 dann für die Farce »Tropic Thunder«. Die Wirrungen und Wendungen seiner Karriere sind selbst fast schon Filmstoff, nun dürfte der Oscar für seinen verbittert-faszinierenden Oppenheim-Gegenspieler Lewis Strauss den vorläufigen Höhepunkt bilden.

Beste Hauptdarstellerin:

  • Lily Gladstone (»Killers of the Flower Moon«)

  • Carey Mulligan (»Maestro«)

  • Sandra Hüller (»Anatomie eines Falls«) – Lesen Sie hier ein Porträt 

  • Annette Bening (»Nyad«)

  • Emma Stone (»Poor Things«) – Lesen Sie hier ein Porträt 

And the Oscar goes to... Emma Stone (»Poor Things«)
Als erste Indigene, die als beste Hauptdarstellerin nominiert ist, hat Lily Gladstone bereits Oscar-Historie geschrieben. Doch diese Art von amerikanischer Erfolgsgeschichte dürfte mehr bei den amerikanischen Stimmberechtigten der Academy verfangen als bei den internationalen. Bei letzteren dürfte Emma Stones Darbietung als Kindsfrau mit entfesselter Libido und ebenso entfesseltem Wissendurst den Vorzug erhalten. Für Sandra Hüller wird es so oder so leider nicht reichen.

Bester Hauptdarsteller:

  • Bradley Cooper (»Maestro«)

  • Cillian Murphy (»Oppenheimer«)

  • Colman Domingo (»Rustin«)

  • Jeffrey Wright (»American Fiction«)

  • Paul Giamatti (»The Holdovers«) – Lesen Sie hier ein Porträt 

And the Oscar goes to...

Cillian Murphy ("Oppenheimer")


You can love or hate "Oppenheimer" for its gravitas, its display of intellectuality and its willful complexity.

But leading actor Murphy, who focuses on everything with his crystal-clear, steel-blue gaze, is the fascinating constant of competence, without whom Christopher Nolan's mega-biopic would not have sparked the pull and hype that led to 13 Oscar nominations.

The Irishman from “Peaky Blinders” is a winner with his first Oscar nomination, no doubt about it.

The possible wild card in this category is “Holdovers” star Paul Giamatti, not would-be maestro Bradley Cooper.

Best Director:

  • Martin Scorsese (“Killers of the Flower Moon”) – See pictures from his career here

  • Christopher Nolan (“Oppenheimer”) – Read about a visit to Nolan and the film project here 

  • Giorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”)

  • Jonathan Glazer (“The Zone of Interest”) – Read about meeting Glazer and working on the film here  

  • Justine Triet (“Anatomy of a Case”)

And the Oscar goes to...

Christopher Nolan


It's hard to believe: The English-born US director, a master of intellectual blockbuster cinema ("Interstellar", "Inception") was only nominated for the directing Oscar once, in 2018 for “Dunkirk”.

He lost to Guillermo Del Toro.

This time his strongest competitor is probably Yorgos Lanthimos from Greece.

But everything points to "Oppenheimer" as the perfect opportunity for the Academy to finally honor the long-overdue Nolan.

Best movie:

  • »American Fiction«

  • “Anatomy of a Case”

  • "Barbie"

  • »The Holdovers«

  • »Killers of the Flower Moon«

  • "Maestro"

  • “Oppenheimer”

  • »Past Lives«

  • “Poor Things” – Read a review here 

  • »The Zone of Interest«

And the Oscar goes to...

»Oppenheimer«.


A complex, historical biographical narrative, star-studded and ambitious, sophisticatedly staged, grippingly designed and set to music, and amazingly successful at the box office: Christopner Nolan's magnum opus practically seems to have been made for the big Oscar Reibach - and has in the past few weeks and Everything that was lying around in terms of prizes has already been cleared away for months.

It would be a miracle if things suddenly changed at the Oscars.

But other record-nominated and believed favorites have also failed due to the Academy's idiosyncrasies.

You no longer have to reckon with blockbuster competitor “Barbie” for “best film”, but you definitely have to reckon with Jonathan Glazer’s Holocaust study “The Zone of Interest”.