So begins December, so begins our first big precursors to set the tone for the rest of the year! This coming week is a big one (NYFCC just announced) and by the time you’re reading this, perhaps these groups have already announced (didn’t mean to ride right up to the line on this one, but busy schedules will cause that!) But I still like to test myself even beyond the major televised awards bodies. I do this for my own satisfaction more than your eyeballs. Nevertheless, three major parties bestow their awards and it’s time to guess which voting blocks prefer which.

In regards to National Board of Review, they have been unafraid to award popular films such as Top Gun: Maverick and Mad Max: Fury Road as their top prize. With plenty of affinity for Warner Bros., especially with the great year they’ve had, I expect the big award to split between One Battle After Another and Sinners. They awarded Paul Thomas Anderson with Licorice Pizza so recently that despite One Battle feeling like the obvious choice, I may have to give Coogler the edge, Anderson getting his prize in Adapted Screenplay. Hamnet also poses a real threat, but for now, I only have it getting a Best Film mention. Marty Supreme also feels very NBR, but just looking over their last Best Film winners, Sinners falls more in line with their preferred taste.

97TH NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW WINNER PREDICTIONS

BEST FILM

Sinners

BEST DIRECTOR

Ryan Coogler
Sinners

BEST ACTOR

Michael B. Jordan
Sinners

BEST ACTRESS

Renate Reinsve
Sentimental Value

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Stellan Skarsgard
Sentimental Value

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Madigan
Weapons

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

Chase Infinity
One Battle After Another

BEST DIRECTORIAL DEBUT

Eva Victor
Sorry, Baby

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Josh Safdie & Ronald Bronstein
Marty Supreme

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Paul Thomas Anderson
One Battle After Another

NBR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AWARD

The Voice of Hind Rajab

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

KPop Demon Hunters

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE

No Other Choice

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

Adolpho Veloso
Train Dreams

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN STUNT DESIGN

Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning

TOP FILMS

F1: The Movie, Frankenstein, Jay Kelly, Marty Supreme, Sinners, Train Dreams, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

Hamnet, Is This Thing On?, Weapons

TOP 5 INTERNATIONAL FILMS

The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sirat

It Was Just An Accident, Nouvelle Vauge

TOP 5 DOCUMENTARIES

2,000 Meters to Andriivka, Orwell: 2+2=5

Mr. Nobody Against Putin, The Perfect Neighbor, Seeds

TOP 10 INDEPENDENT FILMS

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, The Mastermind, Sorry Baby, Urchin

Lurker, Pillion, The Plague, Splitsville, The Testament of Ann Lee, Twinless

National Board of Review announces their winners on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2025.

Getting a preview of the Critics Choice Awards shortlists in their craft categories, one film in particular stood out as a real favorite: No Other Choice. Yes, the “cool” International Feature contender by the beloved, but under-celebrated Korean auteur Park Chan-wook seemed to show up a lot, giving voters an excuse to hopefully throw it nominations in categories like Best Editing. While the Critics Choice organization usually favors American films, given many of the voters possibly catch up to the international titles during winner-voting, this year has been different. NEON has five big international feature contenders, an outstanding four of which stand a real shot at a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars. If Critics Choice decides to embrace No Other Choice, it could get the ball rolling for Park to finally get his long-deserved recognition. The other “unexpected” popular choice this year may be Weapons, propelled by Amy Madigan’s memorable villain performance sure to be nominated here and the 6 spots in Original Screenplay that Cregger has room to squeeze into.

31st CRITICS CHOICE AWARDS NOMINATION PREDICTIONS

BEST PICTURE

Frankenstein
Hamnet
Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Wicked: For Good

No Other Choice
Weapons

BEST DIRECTOR

Guillermo del Toro – Frankenstein
Chloe Zhao- Hamnet
Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme
Paul Thomas Anderson – One Battle After Another
Joachim Trier – Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler – Sinners

BEST ACTOR

Timothee Chalamet – Marty Supreme
George Clooney – Jay Kelly
Leonardo DiCaprio – One Battle After Another
Michael B. Jordan – Sinners
Wagner Moura – The Secret Agent

George Clooney – Jay Kelly
Jesse Plemons – Bugonia

BEST ACTRESS

Jessie Buckley – Hamnet
Rose Byrne – If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Chase Infiniti – One Battle After Another
Renate Reinsve – Sentimental Value
Emma Stone – Bugonia

Cynthia Erivo – Wicked: For Good

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Benicio del Toro – One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi – Frankenstein
Paul Mescal – Hamnet
Sean Penn – One Battle After Another
Adam Sandler – Jay Kelly
Stellan Skarsgard – Sentimental Value

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Elle Fanning – Sentimental Value
Ariana Grande – Wicked: For Good
Amy Madigan – Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku – Sinners
Teyana Taylor – One Battle After Another

Hailee Steinfeld – Sinners

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Weapons

It Was Just An Accident

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Bugonia
Frankenstein
Hamnet
No Other Choice
One Battle After Another

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

BEST ENSEMBLE

Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners

The Long Walk
Rental Family

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS

Miles Caton – Sinners
Cary Christopher – Weapons
Jacobi Jupe – Hamnet

Aidan Delbis – Bugonia
Mason Thames – How to Train Your Dragon
Alfie Williams – 28 Years Later

BEST COMEDY

The Naked Gun

Bugonia
Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

It Was Just An Accident
No Other Choice
The Secret Agent
Sirat

Nouvelle Vague
Sentimental Value

BEST ANIMATED FILM

Arco
Elio
Little Amelie, or the Character of Rain
In Your Dreams
KPop Demon Hunters
Zootopia 2

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Frankenstein
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Train Dreams

Marty Supreme

BEST EDITING

F1: The Movie
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners

Hamnet
No Other Choice

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Sinners
Wicked: For Good

Avatar: Fire & Ash

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Frankenstein
Hamnet
Sinners
Wicked: For Good

One Battle After Another
The Testament of Ann Lee

BEST HAIR & MAKEUP

28 Years Later
Frankenstein
Sinners
Wicked: For Good
Weapons

Bugonia

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Avatar: Fire & Ash
Frankenstein
Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning
Superman

The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Wicked: For Good

BEST STUNT DESIGN

Ballerina
F1: The Movie
Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning
One Battle After Another

Superman
Wicked: For Good

BEST SOUND

F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Warfare

Wicked: For Good

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners

Bugonia

BEST SONG

KPop Demon Hunters, “Golden”
Sinners, “I Lied to You”
Train Dreams, “Train Dreams”
Wicked: For Good, “Girl in the Bubble”

Sinners, “Last Time (I Seen the Sun)”
Sinners, “Pale, Pale Moon”

Critics Choice announces their nominations on Friday, December 5th, 2025.

The Spirit Awards tend to be some of the more unpredictable voting bodies, made up of a small comity and voted on by literally anyone with $100 to donate. The nominations can elevate many films completely unaware by the general public, even those deep in the film space (I don’t think there was a soul that predicted Our Father, The Devil in Best Feature back in 2022). One film I do believe the Spirit Awards will really take to is If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, with Mary Bronstein’s direction and screenplay a thunderous use of minimal, but intense filmmaking and Rose Byrne’s towering lead performance a guarantee to be nominated. Conan O’Brien feels like a stealth Supporting Performance nominee himself. If there’s any film outside of Hamnet that could best If I Had Legs, it would be the Sundance smash Sorry, Baby, which feels like a Best Screenplay winner waiting to happen.

41ST INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS NOMINATION PREDICTIONS

BEST FEATURE

SORRY, BABY
TRAIN DREAMS

HAMNET
IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
THE MASTERMIND
THE TESTAMENT OF ANN LEE

BEST DIRECTOR

Mary Bronstein – IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
Clint Bentley – TRAIN DREAMS

Lynne Ramsay – DIE MY LOVE
Charlie Pollinger – THE PLAGUE
Mona Fastvold – THE TESTAMENT OF ANN LEE

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE

Rose Byrne – IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
Joel Edgerton – TRAIN DREAMS
Dylan O’Brien – TWINLESS
Tessa Thompson – HEDDA

Jessie Buckley – HAMNET
Ethan Hawke – BLUE MOON
Jennifer Lawrence – DIE MY LOVE
Josh O’Connor – THE MASTERMIND
Amanda Seyfried – THE TESTAMENT OF ANN LEE
Eva Victor – SORRY BABY

BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE

Naomie Ackie – SORRY BABY
Nina Hoss – HEDDA

Mark Hamill – THE LIFE OF CHUCK
Dakota Johnson – SPLITSVILLE
John Carrol Lynch – SORRY BABY
William H. Macy – TRAIN DREAMS
Paul Mescal – HAMNET
Indya Moore – FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER
Conan O’Brien – IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
Alexander Skarsgard – PILLION

BEST SCREENPLAY

SORRY BABY
TWINLESSS

FRIENDSHIP
IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
SPLITSVILLE

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

BLUE MOON
PILLION
THE PLAGUE
PLAINCLOTHES
PREPARATION FOR THE NEXT LIFE

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

THE SECRET AGENT

IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT
NO OTHER CHOICE
RESURRECTION
SENTIMENTAL VALUE

BEST DOCUMENTARY

COME SEE ME IN THE GOOD LIGHT
THE PERFECT NEIGHBOR

THE ALABAMA SOLUTION
BLKNWS: TERMS & CONDITIONS
PUT YOUR SOUL ON YOUR HAND AND WALK

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

TRAIN DREAMS

THE LIFE OF CHUCK
NOUVELLE VAGUE
PLAINCLOTHES
THE TESTAMENT OF ANN LEE

BEST EDITING

THE CODE
DIE MY LOVE
IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU
NO OTHER CHOICE
SORRY, BABY

BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

Kayo Martin – THE PLAGUE

Sebiye Behtiyar – PREPARATION FOR THE NEXT LIFE
Jacobi Jupe – HAMNET
Tonatiuh – KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN
Molly Belle Wright – OMAHA

BEST FIRST FEATURE

PILLION
THE PLAGUE
SORRY, BABY
TWINLESS
URCHIN

Film Independent announces their nominations on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2025.

Thoughts? Predictions of your own? Comment below. Thanks for reading!