Take a look at the odds 'Killers of the Flower Moon' brings home Oscar wins
The Golden Globes have come and gone, the Critics Choice Awards have already been made and the Screen Actors Guild Awards have bowed out for another year.
After months of buildup, the cinematic awards season will reach its zenith Sunday when Oscar night makes its long-awaited entrance.
The 96th Academy Awards are airing live from the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood at 6 p.m. Sunday on ABC with Jimmy Kimmel returning as host. (Unlike most years, the Oscars won't be the grand finale of awards season; because of last year's lengthy writers strike, the Writers Guild Awards have been pushed to April 14.)
Oklahoma film fans have a special rooting interest with this year's Oscars: Filmed in and around Osage County in 2021, Martin Scorsese's sweeping historical drama "Killers of the Flower Moon" is competing for 10 Oscars, including best picture, best director and best actress for Lily Gladstone, the first Native American to be nominated for best actress in the nearly 100-year history of the Academy Awards.
Before any envelopes have been opened, "Killers of the Flower Moon" already has set at least seven Academy Awards records with its nominations. Will the biggest movie ever made in Oklahoma join the list of films made in the Sooner State to take home the iconic statuette?
Or will the $200 million fact-based epic become Scorsese's third film — after 2019's “The Irishman” and 2002's “Gangs of New York” — to get 10 Academy Award nominations but not win a single Oscar?
Here are our Oscars predictions for the 10 categories where "Killers of the Flower Moon" is nominated:
Best actress: Lily Gladstone is the best bet for a 'Killers' victory
One of the most closely watched categories at this year's Academy Awards, the best actress race is expected to come down to Gladstone and "Poor Things" star Emma Stone. The contest is considered too close to call, although the breakout star of "Killers of the Flower Moon" is thought to have an edge headed into Oscars weekend.
For her powerhouse portrayal of Mollie Kyle Burkhart — a wealthy real-life Osage woman who was marked for death in the Reign of Terror in 1920s Oklahoma — Gladstone, who is NiMíiPuu, or Nez Perce, and Siksikaitsitapi, or Blackfeet, recently became the first Indigenous performer to win the best film actress category at the SAG Awards.
Both performers emerged victorious at the Golden Globes, with Gladstone winning Best Actress in a Drama and Stone winning Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy. Stone went on to win the best actress prizes at the Critics Choice Awards and Britain's BAFTA Awards, with Gladstone snubbed at the latter.
According to USA Today, the Oscar winner has diverged from the SAG victor only three times in the past 13 years, giving Gladstone the advantage.
Gladstone is the first Native American and just the fourth Indigenous performer to be nominated for the best actress Oscar. If she wins, it's a first on both counts.
If the Montana native loses, it's a good bet that "Killers of the Flower Moon" goes winless at the Academy Awards.
Best picture: Look for 'Oppenheimer' to dominate at the Oscars
It's unfortunate that "Killers of the Flower Moon" has been forced to face off against another powerful historical epic: Christopher Nolan's atomic bomb drama "Oppenheimer" has been a dominant force throughout this awards season, and it comes into the Oscars with a leading 13 nominations.
Expect to see "Oppenheimer" beat out "Killers of the Flower Moon" and the other eight nominees to win best picture.
Best director: Look for Nolan to best Scorsese and everyone else
With his best director nomination for "Killers of the Flower Moon," Scorsese set two Academy Awards records: He has been nominated for best director 10 times, becoming the most nominated living director in Academy Awards history, and at 81, the New Yorker becomes the oldest best director nominee in Oscars history. He passes legendary director, screenwriter and actor John Huston, who was 79 when he was nominated for his 1985 crime movie "Prizzi's Honor."
Despite his status as a cinema icon, Scorsese has only won the best director Oscar once, in 2007 for his gangster epic "The Departed."
Don't expect him to emerge victorious this time: Nolan seems a surefire bet to take home his first Oscar in this category.
Best supporting actor: Robert Downey Jr. is a virtual lock over Robert De Niro and all other nominees
With "Killers of the Flower Moon," Robert De Niro, 80, received his ninth Oscar nomination for portraying greedy cattle baron William K. Hale, who pretended to be a friend to the Osage people while conspiring to kill many of them to steal their oil wealth.
De Niro's "Killers of the Flower Moon" nomination comes 49 years after his first Oscar nomination, for best supporting actor for Francis Ford Coppola's mobster drama "The Godfather Part II" in 1975. That gives De Niro the distinction of the actor with the greatest length of time between his first and most recent Oscar nominations.
Despite widespread praise for De Niro's sinister turn in "Killers of the Flower Moon," Robert Downey Jr. is all but guaranteed to finish his awards season sweep with an Oscar for his slippery portrayal of "Oppenheimer" antagonist Lewis Strauss, one of the original members of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Best original song: Osage composer's performance will be his award
An Oklahoman is among the Oscar nominees for "Killers of the Flower Moon." Based in Del City, Scott George, who is Osage, is nominated for best original song for writing the music and lyrics to “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)."
George is the first Indigenous nominee in the best original song category as well as the first member of the Osage Nation to be nominated for an Academy Award.
George and his fellow Osage Tribal Singers will make more Oscars history when they perform the song on Sunday's Academy Awards.
But it's unlikely the Oscar will go to George: Two of the eight nominations for the blockbuster "Barbie" are in this category, and it's expected that Billie Eilish and her brother, Finneas O'Connell, will take the prize for their ode "What Was I Made For?," over Ryan Gosling's crowd-pleasing anthem "I'm Just Ken," written by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt.
Best score: Love for the late Robbie Robertson unlikely to beat out 'Oppenheimer'
The late Robbie Robertson, who died last August at the age of 80, earned his first Oscar nod posthumously for best score for "Killers of the Flower Moon."
The guitarist and primary songwriter for The Band, he's also the first Indigenous nominee in the category: The son of a Cayuga and Mohawk mother, Robertson lived on the Six Nations Reserve in Canada southwest of Toronto as a youth.
According to Goldderby.com, Robertson, who worked with Scorsese on 12 films over their 45-year partnership, is the only nominee that stands a chance at stopping "Oppenheimer's" Ludwig G?ransson from taking the statuette. But it's a slim chance.
Best editing: Look for 'Oppenheimer' to win the battle of three-hour-plus epics
One of Scorsese's longtime collaborators, Thelma Schoonmaker became the most nominated film editor in Academy Awards' history with "Killers of the Flower Moon." She now has earned nine career nods in the category.
Already a three-time Oscar winner for editing Scorsese's "The Departed," "The Aviator" and "Raging Bull," it's doubtful she will win this year's battle of the three-hour-plus epics vs. "Oppenheimer."
Best cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto unlikely to overcome 'Oppenheimer'
It's a tough year to be cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto. He earned an Oscar nomination for his gorgeous work on "Killers of the Flower Moon" and was acclaimed for his excellent "Barbie" cinematography, too.
But he seems unlikely to overcome the "Oppenheimer" juggernaut, with Hoyte van Hoytema expected to win best cinematography for his innovative efforts on Nolan's atomic bomb blockbuster.
Best costume design: Despite 'Killers' collaborations with the Osage Nation, 'Barbie' expected to be named best dressed
This is one that "Killers of the Flower Moon" should win but almost certainly won't: Costume designer Jacqueline West worked closely with the Osage Nation, forging a tight bond with lead Osage wardrobe consultant Julie O'Keefe and building a talented team of Osage beadworkers, jewelry makers, ribbon work artists and more.
Not only were the results stunningly beautiful but they also represented a remarkable feat of cultural respect and period authenticity: The "Killers of the Flower Moon" team made nearly 4,000 costume pieces, from beaded vests and embroidered broadcloth blankets to more than 500 pairs of moccasins.
Alas, "Barbie" seems destined to be named best dressed at the Oscars. West, a five-time Oscar nominee, is unlikely to beat out "Barbie's" Jacqueline Durran, who is expected to have her third Academy Award in the (undoubtedly fashionable) bag.
Best production design: 'Barbie World' expected to outshine Oklahoma authenticity
The best production design contest is likely to be a repeat of the best costume design race. "Killers of the Flower Moon" was actually made in the Osage Nation, and nominees Jack Fisk and Adam Willis devised visually striking locations while staying painstakingly true to the story's 1920s time period.
But even the incredible Oklahoma authenticity they achieved is hard-pressed to outshine the pink and plastic charms of the entire "Barbie World" Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer created for Greta Gerwig's blockbuster.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Will Oklahoma-made 'Killers of the Flower Moon' win 10 Oscars?