The Academy Awards will be handed out today. Hence, here is the last post in our series of Oscar prediction write-ups, focused on the supporting actor and actress categories.



(Montage by Jayne Orenstein/The Washington Post)

We’re a mere hours away from the Oscars ceremony and have one more category to forecast: best supporting actor and actress. This post was saved for last because, as predictable as some of the other races might be, these two seem like the easiest to call.

Watch the video below in which Post film critic Ann Hornaday and I discuss the contenders, then read my quick take on who will win, should win and was unfairly overlooked by the Academy in these categories. And, of course, feel free to revisit all of our prediction posts via the links that follow.

More Oscar predictions

Best picture

Best director

Best actor and actress

Best original and adapted screenplays

Best supporting actor

The nominees are:

Kenneth Branagh, “My Week With Marilyn”

Jonah Hill, “Moneyball”

Nick Nolte, “Warrior”

Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”

Max von Sydow, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Who will win: Christopher Plummer. He’s won at virtually every awards show all season long, including, weirdly, the Grammys. Just kidding — he did not win a Grammy. But there seems to be no question that this revered, Oscar-less veteran will finally have an Academy Award before the day is over.

Who should win: Plummer deserves it, but for me, this is a tie between the “Beginners” star and von Sydow, who was the best thing in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” and is another exceptional veteran without an Oscar to his credit.

Who should have been nominated but wasn’t: Andy Serkis. His motion-capture performance in “Planet of the Apes” was not just a technical achievement, it was indeed a great piece of acting.

Best supporting actress

The nominees are:

Berenice Bejo, “The Artist”

Jessica Chastain, “The Help”

Melissa McCarthy, “Bridesmaids”

Janet McTeer, “Albert Nobbs”

Octavia Spencer, “The Help”

Who will win: Octavia Spencer. Like Plummer’s win, hers, too, seems like a done deal.

Who should win: Spencer. All of these performances were solid, but I will be happy to see the lady who played Minnie — an actress who seems to have an exceptionally good head on her shoulders — have this moment in the sun.

Who should have been nominated but wasn’t: Shailene Woodley. There’s a reason she won the Spirit Award yesterday — because she not only held her own opposite George Clooney, she elevated his game by bringing an authentic sense of daughterly sorrow to ”The Descendants.”