On March 10, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will host the 96th annual Academy Awards to celebrate the best films released in 2023. Here are my predictions for the winners in Best Picture, the four acting categories and Best Director.

Best Picture: “Oppenheimer”

It would be one of the biggest Best Picture Academy Award upsets of all time if “Oppenheimer” lost Best Picture. So far, the film has won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture — Drama, Best Picture at the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards and Best Film at the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA). “Oppenheimer” has swept the top prize at every major televised awards show this season and will likely finish its run with a deserved Best Picture award at the Academy Awards. There is a very slim chance that “The Holdovers” or “Poor Things” takes home Best Picture, but “Oppenheimer” winning Best Picture is almost as certain as the pope being Catholic.

Best Actress: Lily Gladstone (“Killers of the Flower Moon”)

The most hotly contested race this awards season has been the Best Actress race. What is almost certain is that the award will be won by someone with “Stone” in their last name, as the two frontrunners are Lily Gladstone for “Killers of the Flower Moon” and Emma Stone for “Poor Things.” Gladstone and Stone both won Golden Globes — in the Drama and Musical of Comedy categories, respectively — but they have split the rest of the season as Stone took home the Critics’ Choice Award and BAFTA, while Gladstone won the SAG Award for Best Actress. Currently, Gladstone has all of the momentum coming off of her SAG win and Stone has already won an Academy Award for “La La Land,” perhaps making the Academy members less likely to vote for her.

Best Actor: Cillian Murphy (“Oppenheimer”)

It would be fitting if “Oppenheimer” paired its Best Picture win with a Best Actor win for Cillian Murphy’s eponymous performance as the physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. Murphy is certainly in the lead for Best Actor, as he has won a Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG Award for Best Actor for “Oppenheimer.” His biggest competition is Paul Giamatti for “The Holdovers,” as Giamatti also won a Golden Globe and stole the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actor from Murphy.

Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr. (“Oppenheimer”)

Both the Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress races this year have been rather straightforward, with one person winning at each of the major televised award shows. In Best Supporting Actor, Robert Downey Jr. has swept the year with his performance as Lewis Strauss in “Oppenheimer.” He won the Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice Award, BAFTA and SAG award for Best Supporting Actor and with any luck, will add an Academy Award to his resume. If anyone can upset Downey Jr., it may just be Ryan Gosling for his performance as Ken in “Barbie.”

Best Supporting Actress: Da’Vine Joy Randolph (“The Holdovers”)

Like Downey Jr., Da’Vine Joy Randolph has won every precursor award for Best Supporting Actress, including the Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice Award, BAFTA and SAG Awards. It is all but certain that Randolph will take home the coveted Academy Award for her performance as Mary Lamb in the delightful film “The Holdovers.” If the Academy wants “Oppenheimer” to completely sweep the night, there is a small chance that Emily Blunt may steal the Best Supporting Actress award for her turn as Kitty Oppenheimer.

Best Director: Christopher Nolan (“Oppenheimer”)

Many great directors go their whole career without winning an Academy Award. This includes legends such as Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock and Ingmar Bergman, who never won an Academy Award for Best Director. As of right now, Christopher Nolan sits up there as one of the greatest directors to never win an Academy Award, as he has lent his masterful direction to films like “The Dark Knight,” “Inception” and “Dunkirk.” However, this year will more than likely change that fact as Nolan is poised to win Best Director for his newest masterpiece, “Oppenheimer.” All of the facts point to Nolan winning this award, as he won the Golden Globe, BAFTA and Directors Guild of America Award for Best Director. As excellent as the other four nominees are, a suitable competitor for Nolan has yet to announce themselves. It would be an atomic surprise if Nolan fails to take home his first Best Director Academy Award.