Film awards: Everything you need to know about the 2025 Oscars
A multitude of sensational Oscar-nominated features and actors find themselves on a collision course at the 2025 Academy Awards.
But where can you watch and what’s set to occur on Hollywood’s biggest night?
Film News Blitz’s Aidan Leo previews the 2025 Oscars award ceremony and the possible surprise shocks we may be in store for.
When and where will the 97th Academy Awards take place?
The 2025 Oscars is set to take place tonight (Sunday 2 March) at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.
The awards show will air live in the US at 7PM ET/3PM PT and can be streamed on the popular streaming network Hulu, and can also be viewed on ABC.
UK viewers will be able to catch the start of the ceremony from 22:30 GMT on ITV and ITVX respectively.
Who is hosting, presenting and performing at the 2025 Academy Awards?
Replacing the host of the year prior, Jimmy Kimmel, will be fellow and former talk show host and beloved comedian and podcaster Conan O’Brien.
It will be his first time hosting the event.
Various iconic award-winning A-list acting stars from the previous year will feature at the ceremony and present the acclaimed honours to the award-winning contingent of 2025.
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This list of stars includes Cillian Murphy, Emma Stone, Robert Downey Jr, and Da’Vine Joy Randolph.
Iconic figures and celebrated performers Halle Berry, Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson, Willem Dafoe, Selena Gomez, Ben Stiller, and Oprah Winfrey will be joining last year’s winners as award presenters.
Stoic funnyman Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation) is listed as the award show’s announcer.
The ceremony goer contingent and crowd will be treated to a 10-minute long medley setlist performed by Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.
The esteemed Ryan Gosling performed ‘I’m Just Ken’ at the awards show last year and was received tremendously well by the ceremony’s viewers and online film community.
Hopefully the Wicked stars will receive the same reception of admiration and celebration.
The illustrious evening’s other performers include acclaimed rapper and singer-songwriter Doja Cat, popular Thai rapper-singer Lisa from Blackpink, Hip-Hop and R&B legend Queen Latifah, and highly regarded R&B/Soul star Raye.
General predictions and possible shock winners
The now highly controversial and initial set-to-be film-of-the-year Spanish language and Mexican musical Emilia Perez was handed the honour of 13 Academy Award nominations.
Unfortunately, they could go home with little recognition aside from Zoe Saldana’s probable Best Supporting Actress win, based on the problematic run the film’s reception and lead’s resurfaced online behaviour has been on this year.
It certainly will not be a clean sweep.
Speaking of clean sweeps, however, that is exactly what Demi Moore (The Substance) was set for considering her Best Female Actor run all year long.
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This was of course until, to the surprise of many, Moore was bested by the inspiring and immensely talented Mikey Madison (Anora) at the BAFTAs.
We could be in for yet another against-the-tide win for the star of Sean Baker’s epic feature.
After breakout roles in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) and Scream (2022), a win for her incredible performance in Anora will be the cherry on top of the ever-growing cake of success for Madison.
Equally, the shocks may continue in the race for Best Actor, with one of my all-time favourites, Adrien Brody (The Brutalist) set for an Academy Award win.
However, out of left field, Timothee Chalamet (A Complete Unknown) produced a possible tide-turning result for Best Actor at the SAG Awards after falling short at all the award ceremonies previously.
All but one of the SAG acting award winners of the last three years went on to win Oscars in their respective categories.
There is even more spice thrown into this year’s pot of curry though, whereby a win for Chalamet will not just trump the victory tour of Brody, but it would make him the youngest Academy Award winner, beating out the previous record set by… you guessed it, Brody himself.
Elsewhere, the Best Supporting Actor categories are predicted to be already set-in-stone with Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain) and Zoe Saldana (Emilia Perez) shoe-ins for the prestigious awards and will mark their final signoff after vanquishing all their contemporaries this year.
This year’s Best Feature is a three-horse race
The three-and-a-half-hour monumental feature, The Brutalist, in my mind is tied for first for a probable win alongside the pope-election drama and BAFTA award-winning Conclave.
My outside shout would be the New York stripper joyride Anora, which would be an immensely astonishing win, especially if they take home Best Actress along with it.
The feature shot itself into the top 3 potential wins list with massive victories at the Critics Choice Awards, the Directors Guild of America, and Producers Guild of America ceremonies.
Closing thoughts and predictions
I have felt all year that the 2025 Oscars will be one of significant avenue-turning moments off-course from the initial idea of predicted winners based on the trend of award season.
Therefore, my first prediction, unsurprisingly so, is that Emilia Perez will be very close to taking home the ‘wooden spoon’ this evening, but will be saved by an almost-certain award win for Best Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldana.
This would be astounding though, considering the feature’s 13 Oscar nominations, whereby such a significant amount of nominations has only been obtained by some of the all-time great and classic films.
My second prediction will be a surprise one though.
I predict Mikey Madison will conquer the odds and Demi Moore herself, and leave open-mouthed and in disbelief those that look on from the event’s star-studded crowd and viewers at home when she wins Best Actress.
My third and final prediction is that Timothee Chalamet creates history late this evening, and a story for many of us to reflect on for generations when he wins Best Actor and breaks the record for the youngest actor to win an Academy Award.
This may be a stretch, but the story and drama of it all is exhilarating to think about.
After his staggering SAG Award win, however, this is well possible and it did increase his chances tremendously.
More so than anything reputable though, the year’s Oscars ceremony will be a joyous experience and event, filled with exciting moments and cheerful exchanges amongst the industry’s greats, with hopefully, no controversy.
The 2025 award season is nearing its conclusion.
It has been a beaming joyride and hopefully sets a positive and light-hearted tone for the features set for release throughout the rest of the year.
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