Oscars 2026: Date, host and a Best Picture field heavy with frontrunners

Oscars 2026 will be staged on March 15, and the ceremony’s return to the Dolby Theatre comes with a packed Best Picture race and renewed debate over which film will carry the night. The date and the host signal both continuity and fresh unpredictability as voting heads into its final days.

Conan O’Brien returns to host the March 15 ceremony at the Dolby Theatre

Conan O’Brien is returning to host the 98th Academy Awards on March 15, 2026, after his acclaimed debut at last year’s ceremony. The main ceremony is scheduled to begin at 7 p. m. ET (4 p. m. Pacific) at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, at Ovation Hollywood, with the event broadcasting live on ABC and streaming simultaneously on Hulu for the second year running. The Academy offered a statement that said, "We are thrilled to bring back Conan, Raj, Katy, Jeff and all our creative partners for the ceremony. "

O’Brien is described in coverage as an Emmy-winning comedian and former Late Night host who earned widespread critical acclaim for hosting the 97th Academy Awards, drawing praise for his witty monologues, his connection with presenters and his ability to balance tears with laughter. Organizers and viewers are being urged to tune in early for red carpet coverage and pre-show festivities; voting closes on March 5, leaving ten days for final momentum shifts.

Ten films will compete for Best Picture, including Paul Thomas Anderson and Ryan Coogler entries

On March 15, ten films will compete for the Best Picture Academy Award. The nominated slate mentioned includes Hamnet; Train Dreams; Ryan Coogler’s historical vampire sensation Sinners; Marty Supreme; F1 The Movie; Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another; the Brazilian International Feature entry The Secret Agent; Frankenstein; and the offbeat Bugonia. Coverage notes an Awards Leaderboard tracking which awards each film has already won, including Golden Tomato awards.

The conversation around the race has clustered particularly around One Battle After Another and Sinners, with some predicting a split between Picture and Director and others expecting writing- and producing-driven outcomes to shape the final winners.

The Secret Agent tops the Tomatometer and is a 2025 entry set in 1977 Recife

The Secret Agent sits at the top of the Tomatometer with a 98% score. Critics framed it as a thematically rich, visually arresting political thriller that blends grindhouse stylization with biting social commentary. The film’s synopsis places action in Brazil in 1977: Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run and, hoping to reunite with his son, travels to Recife. The Secret Agent’s listed cast includes Wagner Moura, Sebastiana de Medeiros, Udo Kier and Gabriel Leone.

Season leaders and predictions: One Battle After Another, Sinners and writing-category momentum

One Battle After Another has emerged in coverage as a frontrunner for Best Picture, described as Paul Thomas Anderson’s most ambitious work to date and said to have won major season awards and collected critical momentum. The film’s listed cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Chase Infiniti and Benicio del Toro.

Forum discussion and race commentary note fatigue with OBAA winning everything and a concurrent resurgence with Sinners; many commentators are predicting Sinners for Picture and OBAA for Director, while others hope for the opposite outcome. A recurring contention in that discussion is that both PTA (Paul Thomas Anderson) and Coogler are expected to go home Oscar winners thanks to the Writing categories, with PTA especially positioned to take Writing and Producing (Best Picture) prizes even if he loses in Directing. One post points out that one contender directed the film with the most Oscar nominations ever. Commenters also named a string of awards bodies—GG, CC, BAFTA, NBR, NSFC, LAFCA, NYFCC, LFCC, PGA—and a Cesar for Best Foreign Film when tracing season carryover. The conversation notes DGA and ACE wins and the likelihood of WGA support in some cases, and observes that of the last 10 Oscar ceremonies only three times did Best Picture go to the most nominated film that year. Several posts also flagged the PGA as the last good chance for certain predictions to crystalize.