{"id":32305,"date":"2026-01-09T10:19:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T15:19:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=32305"},"modified":"2026-03-13T05:41:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T09:41:23","slug":"looking-forward-to-2026s-award-season-from-the-golden-globes-to-the-oscars-who-should-win-and-will-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=32305","title":{"rendered":"Looking Forward to 2026’s Award Season from The Golden Globes to the Oscars — Who Should Win and Will Win"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Jessie Buckley, Leo DeCaprio, Michael B. Jordan<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Preview by Brad Balfour, Arts Editor
 
With this weekend\u2019s broadcast Sunday, January 11, 2026, on CBS, the 83rd Golden Globes set up the award season finale to come \u2014 The Oscars. The 98th Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, televised on ABC. It recognizes films released in 2025, with all the major categories to be awarded that night. A new “Achievement in Casting” category is being introduced for the first time. 
 
But I\u2019m here to take note of the lead up to the Globes with regard to its film categories. I\u2019m not going to get into the validity of these awards given the questionable record of the Foreign Press Association which had created the awards years ago. The first awards presentation for distinguished achievements in the film industry granted by Hollywood Foreign Correspondents Association \u2014 the precursor of today\u2019s Hollywood Foreign Press Association \u2014 took place in early 1944. 
 
In 1951, the association decided to divide the best film, actor and actress nominees into two categories \u2014 drama, and musical or comedy \u2014 so that no genre would be slighted. In 1952, the HFPA created the Cecil B. deMille Award to recognize \u201coutstanding contribution to the entertainment field.\u201d The award\u2019s first recipient was deMille himself. Helen Mirren is this year’s recipient.
 
In recent years, CBS began broadcasting a revamped show on a Sunday in early January. Though it\u2019s a new year, it\u2019s the same awards season. Starting with the Critic\u2019s Choice Awards last Sunday and the National Society of Film Critics awards being handed out the Saturday before, a clearer picture is emerging of what may be in store on Oscar night \u2014 which then concludes the season. This week\u2019s nomination announcements are being made from bodies including three of the top guilds: DGA, PGA and SAG. After Golden Globes ceremony airs, it’s the eve of Oscar voting, which opens next Monday. 
 
Though the Globes come with such baggage, the show remains an important campaign stop \u2014 particularly for the lead actors and actresses. Each will have the opportunity to deliver their memorable speech just before AMPAS (the voting body for the Oscars) members decide who they want to see collect Academy Awards with its own set of subsequent speeches. 
 
While waiting for Sunday night\u2019s dramatics, with comedian Nikki Glaser returning to host the night, here\u2019s a look at what various voters have had to say so far \u2014 and how they’ve extended director Paul Thomas Anderson\u2019s \u201cOne Battle After Another\u201d more accolades. Having seen the film, and being a fan of PTA, I don\u2019t get it since it\u2019s nowhere near his best film, but others are falling all over themselves about this picture. Anderson\u2019s latest has gotten four top honors for best picture, best director, best supporting actor and best supporting actress (Benicio del Toro and Teyana Taylor, respectively) in the Critics\u2019 race. But the most distinct character in the film is the Colonel played by Sean Penn who certainly deserves to be a contender in any best supporting actor race.
 
As to the Globes, because the races are split between drama and musical or comedy, wins could bolster a number of performers\u2019 status as frontrunners. Michael B. Jordan from \u201cSinners\u201d and Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet from \u201cMarty Supreme\u201d are likely to score in the respective best drama and musical\/comedy categories. Jessie Buckley in \u201cHamnet\u201d is almost certain to win best drama actress award.
 
The musical\/comedy actress race is more competitive. Three stars \u2014 Cynthia Erivo (in \u201cWicked: For Good), Kate Hudson (of \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d) and Amanda Seyfried (lead of \u201cThe Testament\u201d of Ann Lee”) are all singing for these prizes \u2014 in their various films. Among the non-musical roles, Rose Byrne is likely to grab the statue for her work in “If I Had Legs I\u2019d Kick You\u201d — and deservedly so. Her competition, \u201cOne Battle After Another\u201d newcomer Chase Infiniti and Emma Stone from \u201cBugonia\u201d turn in powerful performances — all worthy of good reviews and notices. But I\u2019d have to give to Byrne if only because she\u2019s in every scene and has to do serious heavy-lifting throughout.
 
The previous weekend\u2019s events also boosted several contenders for below-the-line categories. Guillermo del Toro\u2019s \u201cFrankenstein\u201d picked up prizes for production and costume design, plus hair and makeup. As Frankenstein’s creation, Jacob Elordi\u2019s work in the movie is worthy of a Best Supporting Actor nod. Netflix\u2019s other viable Best Picture contender, Clint Bentley\u2019s \u201cTrain Dreams,\u201d won Best Cinematography, while Joseph Kosinski\u2019s \u201cF1\u201d took Best Editing and Sound — a great film getting lost in the shuffle for Best Picture. James Cameron\u2019s \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash,\u201d won Best Visual Effects \u2014 an obvious choice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All these deserve to be on the Oscars\u2019 Best Picture list with Del Toro, Bentley and Kosinski also suitable for noms as Best Director. I would also add \u201cSinners\u201d and \u201cSentimental Value\u201d to the Best Picture list with Ryan Coogler and Joachim Trier, respectively, worthy of a Best Director award.
 
For Kleber Mendon\u00e7a Filho\u2019s \u201cThe Secret Agent\u201d \u2014 starring the great Brazilian actor Wagner Moura \u2014 the awards and accolades have been rolling in and are well-deserved.  The picture won Best Foreign Film at the Critics Choice Awards and has been getting nods for Best Actor and Best Screenplay as well. The NEON-heavy international race is still a toss-up, with most of its contenders \u2014 which also include \u201cIt Was Just an Accident,\u201d \u201cNo Other Choice,\u201d \u201cSentimental Value\u201d and \u201cSir\u0101t\u201d \u2014 winning prizes outside of the international film categories. 
 
I\u2019m not going to get into a category unique to the Globes \u2014 Cinematic and Box Office Achievement. It\u2019s fairly redundant and only there to stroke film companies for their commercial hits.
 
Though I could go on for about other categories in both the Globes and Oscars, I will just give a few films props here because I thought they were noteworthy and awards worthy. So look out for these documentaries on various shortlists: \u201cApocalypse in the Tropics,\u201d \u201cFolktales,\u201d \u201cCover-Up,\u201d  \u201cYanuni,\u201d “Mr. Nobody Against Putin” and the massive \u201cMy Undesirable Friends: Part 1 \u2013 Last Air in Moscow.\u201d
 
In the International Feature realm look out for Japan\u2019s \u201cKokuho\u201d and Taiwan\u2019s \u201cLeft-Handed Girl.\u201d Films that also deserve notice though they might be long shots in various categories are: \u201cBlue Moon\u201d and its star Ethan Hawke, \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d with its female lead Hudson and \u201cWeapons\u201d with one of its stars, Amy Madigan, getting great reviews.
 
On the Best Animated list, Netflix\u2019s \u201cKPop Demon Hunters\u201d is a massive hit and a strong Golden Globe nominee, making it a major front-runner as a feature film and for its song, \u201cGolden.\u201d And though it\u2019s unlikely to win, \u201cLittle Am\u00e9lie or the Character of Rain\u201d is a beautiful film everyone should see.
 
One final note to this report\/preview. Never have I seen a year when so many genre films such as \u201cFrankenstein,\u201d \u201cWeapons\u201d or \u201cSinners\u201d are in major categories, and well they should be. The art of film-making needs such imaginative and thought-provoking fare to get people before their screens or in the theaters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve ignored the TV\/Streaming categories because when a series has multiple episodes there are opportunities for expansive story-telling. So viewing the season is a requite for me and I haven’t been able able to view them in their entirety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s in making a feature film — even if it\u2019s over three-hours long — that creators face a challenge beyond just great concepts. They have to get it done within the limitations of making a feature. And they have to get it right within that framework. I salute anyone who can do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Awards Calendar January 2026
Jan. 7: Art Directors Guild and Screen Actors Guild nominations
Jan. 8: American Society of Cinematographers and Directors Guild nominations
Jan. 9: Producers Guild of America nominations
Jan. 11: Golden Globe Awards
Jan. 12: Academy Award nominations voting begins
Jan. 22: Academy Award nominations<\/p>\n

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