Lead
Hollywood gathers Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 2026 Academy Awards, where two Warner Bros. films — Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another and Ryan Coogler’s Sinners — are positioned to dominate the evening. One Battle After Another enters the telecast as the bookmakers’ favorite, while Sinners arrives with a record 16 nominations. The ceremony, airing live on ABC and streaming on Hulu at 7 p.m. Eastern, could hand either director a first Oscar in a close, unpredictable show.
Key Takeaways
- Sinners leads the field with a record 16 Academy Award nominations; One Battle After Another is widely seen as the likely best-picture winner by many pundits.
- The Oscars air live on ABC and stream on Hulu at 7 p.m. ET; AP will livestream arrivals from noon to 3:30 p.m. PT on APNews.com and YouTube.
- Two best song nominees will be performed live: “I Lied to You” (Sinners) and “Golden” (KPop Demon Hunters).
- The event takes place two weeks after the United States, under President Donald Trump, launched the war with Iran, prompting heightened security measures.
- KPop Demon Hunters was the most-watched movie of 2025 with 325 million views on Netflix, but streaming titles remain rare Best Picture winners; Apple’s CODA is still the only streaming film to win.
- Warner Bros. releases dominate the top contenders; the studio is reportedly set to merge with David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance in a proposed $111 billion transaction awaiting regulatory approval.
- The academy introduced a best casting category and a requirement that voting members confirm they watched nominees on the academy’s streaming platform before casting ballots.
Background
The 98th Academy Awards have crystallized around two large-scale, director-driven studio pictures released theatrically and shot on film. Both One Battle After Another and Sinners came from Warner Bros., a legacy studio navigating consolidation in an industry reshaped by recent acquisitions such as Amazon’s MGM and Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox.
The awards landscape has also changed procedurally: the Academy added a best casting prize and tightened voting rules by requiring members to attest they watched nominees on its streaming platform before voting. These reforms are intended to increase rigor and broaden recognition of crafts that historically received less visibility.
Main Event
On Sunday, the Dolby Theatre will host a tightly contested telecast with Conan O’Brien returning as host for a second consecutive year. O’Brien has said he aims to keep the evening entertaining in a classic, variety-show spirit despite the larger geopolitical backdrop, telling reporters, “Let’s have fun with it, is my attitude.” The show opens with a red carpet preshow on ABC and Hulu at 6:30 p.m. ET; E! begins its coverage at 4 p.m.
Security is notably elevated compared with prior years. The ceremony comes two weeks after the United States and President Donald Trump launched military action in Iran, and producers say they are coordinating closely with law enforcement agencies including the FBI and LAPD. Executive producer Raj Kapoor emphasized collaboration with authorities in the week leading up to the event.
The acting races remain fluid. Michael B. Jordan and Timothée Chalamet are both serious contenders for best actor in a category many observers call too close to call; Chalamet was once viewed as the front-runner for Marty Supreme, but a late-campaign controversy over comments perceived as disparaging ballet and opera coincided with a resurgence for Jordan. Jessie Buckley is widely favored in best actress for Hamnet, while supporting acting slots are hotly contested across several nominees.
Analysis & Implications
An all-Warner Bros. podium would offer a symbolic moment for theatrical, auteur-driven filmmaking amid streaming dominance. Both Sinners and One Battle After Another were released in theaters and shot on celluloid, bucking the trend toward franchise sequels and streaming-first releases. If the Academy rewards these films, it would signal that big-budget, original studio films with strong directorial authorship still resonate with voters.
Industry consolidation adds another layer of consequence. The reported $111 billion merger between Warner Bros. and David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance, pending regulatory review, would combine two major production and distribution forces. A high-profile Oscars showing for Warner titles could strengthen the studio’s cultural capital as it navigates antitrust scrutiny and integration planning.
For performers, wins would be career-defining: both Coogler and Anderson are poised to collect their first directing Oscars if results go as some expect. For streaming platforms, the picture is more mixed. KPop Demon Hunters’ 325 million streams made it the most-watched movie of 2025 on Netflix, but history suggests voters still favor theatrical releases for Best Picture — Apple’s CODA remains the lone streaming Best Picture winner to date.
Comparison & Data
| Title / Item | Studio / Platform | Key Figure |
|---|---|---|
| Sinners | Warner Bros. | 16 nominations (record) |
| One Battle After Another | Warner Bros. | Market favorite for best picture (pre-show betting and pundit consensus) |
| KPop Demon Hunters | Netflix | 325 million streams in 2025 |
| Proposed merger | Warner Bros. & Paramount Skydance | $111 billion (proposed transaction) |
The table isolates a few numbers that shape narratives this awards season: nominations and streaming reach are measurable signals, while “favorite” status is derived from industry polling, odds and pundit analysis rather than a hard metric. The merger figure represents announced deal terms that must clear regulatory review.
Reactions & Quotes
Producers and talent have framed the show as a chance for levity amid global tensions. Conan O’Brien, asked about tone, offered a concise directive to the press:
“Let’s have fun with it, is my attitude.”
Conan O’Brien
On security and coordination, the show’s executive producer stressed collaboration with law enforcement in advance of the ceremony:
“We have the support of the FBI and the LAPD, and it’s a close collaboration.”
Raj Kapoor, Executive Producer
Filmmakers and advocacy groups have also noted the academy’s procedural changes. Several guild and voter representatives said the viewing-attestation rule could raise the bar for consideration, but its effect on final ballots remains to be seen.
Unconfirmed
- Whether the new viewing-attestation rule materially changed voting outcomes remains unproven; the academy has not released data correlating viewership checks with final ballots.
- It is not confirmed which, if any, additional nominees connected to the Iran conflict will attend in person, as travel and security constraints are still being resolved.
- Reports about how the proposed Warner–Paramount Skydance transaction will affect studio awards strategies are speculative until regulators conclude their review.
Bottom Line
Sunday’s Oscars are framed as both a traditional celebration of theatrical filmmaking and a referendum of sorts on how the industry values big-studio, director-led pictures versus streaming-first content. With Sinners holding a record 16 nominations and One Battle After Another widely viewed as the favorite, the night could crown a rare, all-Warner Bros. sweep of prestige attention.
Beyond trophies, the ceremony will be watched for industry signal — which business model and which types of films the Academy elevates at a time of consolidation and geopolitical strain. For viewers, the event blends spectacle with the real-world stakes of studio power, political turmoil and evolving voting rules, making the outcomes consequential well beyond the Dolby Theatre.