93rd Academy Awards Betting Odds: Nomadland Leads Best Picture Faves
The 93rd annual Academy Awards ceremony to be held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles will have a different feel to it. It is expected to take place on April 25 in an all but empty venue, with actors most likely being presented their Oscars virtually.
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The official nominees in each category have yet to be announced, with that expected to happen on March 15. Oddsmakers, though, are taking a shot in the dark on which films and actors will get nominated and which will win the awards.
| Film | Odds |
|---|---|
| Nomadland | -130 |
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 | +275 |
| Mank | +800 |
| Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom | +1000 |
| Minari | +1200 |
| One Night in Miami | +1200 |
| Promising Young Woman | +2000 |
| The Green Knight | +2000 |
| Da 5 Bloods | +3300 |
| Judas and the Black Messiah | +3300 |
| News of the World | +3300 |
| The Father | +3300 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
Best Picture Odds
Last year, “Parasite” made history as the first film not in the English language to win Best Picture. This year there are three choices from Netflix on the board, including one from Amazon Prime Video.
Nomadland is now the heavy Oscar odds betting favorite at -130 to win the best picture. It will be released next week and stars Frances McDormand, who won the Best Actress award in 2018 for her leading role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Nomadland is described as a movie about a woman who embarks on a journey through the American West after losing everything during the recession.
Another movie that is getting a ton of praise is The Trial of the Chicago 7, which has +275 Oscar betting odds to win Best Picture. The film was dropped in September by the streaming service Netflix and is based on the infamous 1969 trial of seven defendants charged by the federal government with conspiracy arising from the countercultural protests in Chicago at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
| Director | Odds |
|---|---|
| Chloe Zhao (Nomadland) | -450 |
| David Fincher (Mank) | +950 |
| Aaron Sorkin (The Trial of the Chicago 7) | +1400 |
| Regina King (One Night In Miami) | +2000 |
| Paul Greengrass (News of the World) | +2000 |
| Florian Zeller (The Father) | +2000 |
| Lee Isaac Chung (Minari) | +2200 |
| Lee Daniels (The United States vs Billie Holliday) | +2800 |
| Sam Levinson (Malcolm & Marie) | +2800 |
| George Wolf (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) | +3000 |
| Spike Lee (Da 5 Bloods) | +3000 |
| Shaka King (Judas and the Black Messiah) | +3500 |
| Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) | +4500 |
| Francis Lee (Ammonite) | +4500 |
| Ron Howard (Hillbilly Elegy) | +4500 |
| Christopher Nolan (Tenet) | +6000 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
Best Director Odds
The Best Director award should be very interesting with a ton of notable names on the oddsboard. Regina King, who won an Emmy for Lead Actress in a Limited Series for her role in the show Watchmen, gets her first chance at directing a movie and her Oscar odds at +2000 give her a good chance to win.
Aaron Sorkin (+1400) is also a very good value bet. He is no stranger to the Academy Awards, having been nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay for Moneyball and Molly’s Game, and winning for The Social Network. Sorkin wrote the screenplay and directed this film.
However, it’s Chloe Zhao who is now the huge betting favorite at -450 for her directing work in Nomadland. Zhao had directed a few low-budget films before Nomadland, as well as being pegged to direct the Marvel movie The Eternals. She actually received several accolades, including nominations for Independent Spirit Award for Best Film and Best Director, for her 2017 movie The Rider.
This will not be an easy choice as all five potential nominees have done some great work on these films and will be well represented throughout the other awards.
| Actor | Odds |
|---|---|
| Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) | -500 |
| Anthony Hopkins (The Father) | +600 |
| Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal) | +750 |
| Gary Oldman (Mank) | +1400 |
| Steven Yeun (Minari) | +1400 |
| Delroy Lindo (Da 5 Bloods) | +1500 |
| John David Washington (Malcolm & Marie) | +2500 |
| Kingsley Ben-Adir (One Night In Miami) | +3000 |
| Colin Firth (Supernova) | +4500 |
| Tom Hanks (News of the World) | +4500 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
| Actress | Odds |
|---|---|
| Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) | +160 |
| Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman) | +175 |
| Frances McDormand (Nomadland) | +375 |
| Vanessa Kirby (Pieces of a Woman) | +800 |
| Amy Adams (Hillbilly Elegy) | +1800 |
| Michelle Pfeiffer (French Exit) | +2000 |
| Nicole Beharie (Miss Juneteenth) | +2500 |
| Zendaya (Malcolm & Marie) | +2500 |
| Sophia Loren (The Life Ahead) | +2800 |
| Anya Taylor-Joy (Emma) | +3300 |
| Kate Winslet (Ammonite) | +4000 |
| Meryl Streep (Let Them All Talk) | +4000 |
| Meryl Streep (The Prom) | +4000 |
| Rashida Jones (On The Rocks) | +5000 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
Best Actor Odds
For the Best Actor award, Anthony Hopkins is a strong choice at +600 odds to win the Best Actor Oscar for his role in The Father. He plays an old man who refuses the assistance of his daughter as he struggles with dementia. Hopkins is a terrific actor, so it makes sense that he’s on the top of the list for now as the top choice.
However, I think the award should be given posthumously to Chadwick Boseman, who is now the betting favorite in this category at -500 odds for his role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Earlier this year we lost this incredible actor after he succumbed to colon cancer. The movie is expected to be released next week and the critics are already saying that Boseman and Viola Davis steal the film. This is the final film for the actor who brought Black Panther to the big screen.
I think the Academy will do right by him, just like they did with Heath Ledger back in 2009, and give him the award.
Best Actress Odds
For Best Actress, I am going to stick with Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom lead actress Viola Davis, the favorite to win the award at +160. She plays blues singer Ma Rainey during the 1920s. Davis is an exceptional actress who has been nominated for an Academy Award three times, winning once.
The other name on this board to watch is Carey Mulligan at +175 for her leading role in Promising Young Woman. Mulligan has gotten a ton of praise for her depiction of this role. She plays a woman by the name of Cassie who is wickedly smart, tantalizingly cunning, and is given a chance to right the wrongs from her past.
Best Of The Rest:
| Actor | Odds |
|---|---|
| Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah) | +110 |
| Leslie Odom Jr. (One Night In Miami) | +200 |
| Sacha Baron Cohen (The Trial of the Chicago 7) | +450 |
| Paul Raci (Sound of Metal) | +1100 |
| Chadwick Boseman (Da 5 Bloods) | +1200 |
| Stanley Tucci (Supernova) | +2000 |
| Mark Rylance (The Trial of the Chicago 7) | +2800 |
| Bill Muray (On The Rocks) | +3300 |
| Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (The Trial of the Chicago 7) | +3300 |
| Lucas Hedges (French Exit) | +3500 |
| David Strathairn (Nomadland) | +4000 |
| Frank Langella (The Trial of the Chicago 7) | +4000 |
| Charles Dance (Mank) | +5000 |
| Coleman Domingo (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) | +5000 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
| Actress | Odds |
|---|---|
| Glenn Close (Hillbilly Elegy) | +300 |
| Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm) | +320 |
| Olivia Coleman (The Father) | +325 |
| Amanda Seyfried (Mank) | +350 |
| Yuh-Jung Youn (Minari) | +350 |
| Ellen Burstyn (Pieces of a Woman) | +2000 |
| Helena Zengel (News of the World) | +2200 |
| Candice Bergen (Let Them All Talk) | +3000 |
| Nicole Kidman (The Prom) | +3000 |
| Saoirse Ronan (Ammonite) | +3500 |
| Marisa Tomei (The King of Staten Island) | +4000 |
| Toni Collette (I’m Thinking of Ending Things) | +4000 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
| Film | Odds |
|---|---|
| The Trial of the Chicago 7 | +150 |
| Mank | +325 |
| Promising Young Woman | +325 |
| Malcolm & Marie | +700 |
| Minari | +800 |
| Soul | +1100 |
| Judas and the Black Messiah | +1800 |
| Da 5 Bloods | +2000 |
| On The Rocks | +3300 |
| Ammonite | +4500 |
| Never Rarely Sometimes Always | +4500 |
| Ordinary Love | +4500 |
| Palm Springs | +4500 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
| Film | Odds |
|---|---|
| Nomadland | -250 |
| One Night In Miami | +450 |
| Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom | +800 |
| The Father | +850 |
| News of the World | +1400 |
| Hillbilly Elegy | +1800 |
| The United States vs Billie Holiday | +2200 |
| Borat Subsequent Moviefilm | +3000 |
| I’m Thinking of Ending Things | +3500 |
| French Exit | +4000 |
| Prom | +4000 |
| The Life Ahead | +4000 |
Odds as of February 12 at Bovada
Oscars Betting FAQ
Can I bet on the Academy Awards?
Yes, you can make entertainment bets on the Academy Awards. You can wager on such things as which film will win Best Picture. You can bet on who will win Best Director. You can place bets on who will win Best Actor or Best Actress. You can ever bet on Best Original Screenplay, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
What's the difference between the Academy Awards and the Oscars?
Believe it or not, there is actually no difference between the Academy Awards and the Oscars. The Academy Awards and the Oscars are the same thing. The name for the gold trophy is merely nicknamed "Oscar", which is why the Academy Awards are sometimes referred to as the Oscars. The official name for an academy trophy is the Academy Award of Merit.
Who is the favorite to win Best Picture? win Best Picture?
Nomadland is the current betting favorite at +215 odds to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. The film is about a woman embarking on a journey through the American West after losing everything during the recession. Other notable films nominated for the award include “Mank” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7”.
