2025 Oscars Best Director Predictions

Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.

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Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:

OSCARS | EMMYS | GRAMMYS | TONYS

2025 Oscars Predictions:
Best Director

Weekly Commentary (Updated Sept. 3, 2024): More to come.

Read: You can see all Academy Award predictions in all 23 categories on one page on the Variety Awards Circuit: Oscars.

Read: All Primetime Emmy predictions in every category on Variety’s Awards Circuit.

** denotes the film is not yet dated or can open in 2025.

And the Predicted Nominees Are

Next in Line

Other Contenders

Also In Contention

Eligible Titles (Best Director)

** This list is incomplete and not yet finalized. Not all films have distribution or release dates. All are subject to change.

• Fede álvarez — “Alien: Romulus” (20th Century Studios)

• Payal Kapadia — “All We Imagine as Light” (Janus Films/Sideshow)

• Sean Baker — “Anora” (Neon)

• Ali Abbasi — “The Apprentice” (Briarcliffe Entertainment)

• Halina Reijn — “Babygirl” (A24)

• Tim Burton — “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” (Warner Bros.)

• Michael Gracey — “Better Man” (Paramount Pictures)

• Nathan Silver — “Between the Temples” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Jeff Nichols — “The Bikeriders” (Focus Features)

• Andrea Arnold — “Bird” (Mubi)

• Zo? Kravitz — “Blink Twice” (Amazon MGM)

• Steve McQueen — “Blitz” (Apple Original Films)

• Reinaldo Marcus Green — “Bob Marley: One Love” (Paramount Pictures)

• Brady Corbet — “The Brutalist” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Luca Guadagnino — “Challengers” (Amazon MGM)

• Alex Garland — “Civil War” (A24)

• James Mangold — “A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight Pictures)

• Edward Berger — “Conclave” (Focus Features)

• Christy Hall — “Daddio” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Natalie Rae and Angela Patton — “Daughters” (Netflix)

• Shawn Levy — “Deadpool & Wolverine” (Marvel Studios)

• Rebel Wilson — “The Deb” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Chris Renaud — “Despicable Me 4” (Illumination/Universal Pictures)

• Aaron Schimberg — “A Different Man” (A24)

• Sean Wang — “Dìdi” (Focus Features)

• Embeth Davidtz — “Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Denis Villeneuve — “Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.)

• Ron Howard — “Eden” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• RJ Cutler — “Elton John: Never Too Late” (Walt Disney Pictures)

• Jacques Audiard — “Emilia Pérez” (Netflix)

• Audrey Diwan — “Emmanuelle” (Neon) **

• Joshua Oppenheimer — “The End” (Neon)

• Ryusuke Hamaguchi — “Evil Does Not Exist” (Sideshow)

• Erica Tremblay — “Fancy Dance” (Apple Original Films)

• Rachel Morrison — “The Fire Inside” (Amazon MGM)

• Karim A?nouz — “Firebrand” (Roadside Attractions)

• Gints Zilbalodis — “Flow” (Janus Films/Sideshow)

• Carla Gutierrez — “Frida” (Amazon MGM)

• Scott McGehee and David Siegel — “The Friend” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Max Eggers and Sam Eggers — “The Front Room” (A24)

• George Miller — “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” (Warner Bros.)

• Ridley Scott — “Gladiator II” (Paramount Pictures)

• Mike Leigh — “Hard Truths” (Bleecker Street)

• Robert Zemeckis — “Here” (Sony Pictures)

• Scott Beck and Bryan Woods — “Heretic” (A24)

• Azazel Jacobs — “His Three Daughters” (Netflix)

• Richard Linklater — “Hit Man” (Netflix)

• Kevin Costner — “Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1” (Warner Bros.)

• Irene Taylor — “I Am Celine Dion” (Amazon MGM)

• Jane Schoenbrun — “I Saw the TV Glow” (A24)

• Walter Salles — “I’m Still Here” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Michael Showalter — “The Idea of You” (Amazon MGM)

• John Krasinski — “IF” (Paramount Pictures)

• Yoshiyuki Momose — “The Imaginary” (Netflix)

• Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio — “In the Summers” (Music Box Films)

• Justin Baldoni — “It Ends With Us” (Sony Pictures)

• Annie Baker — “Janet Planet” (A24)

• Todd Phillips — “Joker: Folie à Deux” (Warner Bros.)

• Anderson .Paak — “K-Pops!” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Yorgos Lanthimos — “Kinds of Kindness” (Searchlight Pictures)

• Wes Ball — “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” (20th Century Studios)

• Rich Peppiatt — “Kneecap” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Gia Coppola — “The Last Showgirl” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Ellen Kuras — “Lee” (Roadside Attractions)

• Mike Flanagan — “The Life of Chuck” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Osgood Perkins — “Longlegs” (Neon)

• Rose Glass — “Love Lies Bleeding” (A24)

• Pablo Larraín — “Maria” (Netflix)

• Julie Delpy — “Meet the Barbarians” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Francis Ford Coppola — “Megalopolis” (Lionsgate)

• Adam Elliot — “Memoir of a Snail” (IFC Films)

• Edward Burns — “Millers in Marriage” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Alain Guiraudie — “Misericordia” (Janus Films) **

• David Derrick Jr. — “Moana 2” (Walt Disney Pictures)

• Dev Patel — “Monkey Man” (Universal Pictures)

• Michel Hazanavicius — “The Most Precious of Cargoes” (StudioCanal)

• Beno?t Delhomme — “Mothers’ Instinct” (Neon)

• Barry Jenkins — “Mufasa: The Lion King” (Walt Disney Pictures)

• Megan Park — “My Old Ass” (Amazon MGM)

• RaMell Ross — “Nickel Boys” (Amazon MGM/Orion)

• Marielle Heller — “Nightbitch” (Searchlight Pictures)

• Robert Eggers — “Nosferatu” (Focus Features)

• Paul Schrader — “Oh, Canada” (Kino Lorber)

• Rungano Nyoni — “On Becoming a Guinea Fowl” (A24)

• Daniel Minahan — “On Swift Horses” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Justin Kurzel — “The Order” (Vertical Entertainment)

• Nora Fingscheidt — “The Outrun” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Pablo Sorrentino — “Parthenope” (A24)

• Peter Cattaneo — “The Penguin Lessons” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Malcolm Washington — “The Piano Lesson” (Netflix)

• Morgan Neville — “Piece by Piece” (Focus Features)

• Lynne Ramsay — “Polaris” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Luca Guadagnino — “Queer” (A24)

• Erik Poppe — “Quisling – The Final Days” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Jesse Eisenberg — “A Real Pain” (Searchlight Pictures)

• David Mackenzie — “Relay” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Uberto Pasolini — “The Return” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Sydney Freeland — “Rez Ball” (Netflix)

• Dito Montiel — “Riff Raff” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Pedro Almodóvar — “The Room Next Door” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• Guy Maddine, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson — “Rumours” (Bleecker Street)

• Nathan Zellner and David Zellner — “Sasquatch Sunset” (Bleecker Street)

• Mohammad Rasoulof — “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” (Neon)

• Tim Fehlbaum — “September 5” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• John Ridley — “Shirley” (Netflix)

• David Cronenberg — “The Shrouds” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Greg Kwedar — “Sing Sing” (A24)

• Tyler Perry — “Six Triple Eight” (Netflix)

• Tim Mielants — “Small Things Like These” (Lionsgate)

• Jason Reitman — “Saturday Night” (Sony Pictures)

• Jeff Fowler — “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” (Paramount Pictures)

• Vicky Jenson — “Spellbound” (Netflix)

• Robert Morgan — “Stopmotion” (IFC/Shudder)

• Coralie Fargeat — “The Substance” (Mubi)

• Ian Bonh?te and Peter Ettedgui — “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” (Warner Bros.)

• Simon Otto — “That Christmas” (Netflix)

• Josh Margolin — “Thelma” (Magnolia Pictures)

• Josh Cooley — “Transformers One” (Paramount Pictures)

• Daina O. Pusi? — “Tuesday” (A24)

• Lee Isaac Chung — “Twisters” (Universal Pictures)

• Shannon Tindle — “Ultraman: Rising” (Netflix)

• William Goldenberg — “Unstoppable” (Amazon MGM)

• Kelly Marcel — “Venom: The Last Dance” (Sony Pictures)

• Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham — “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl” (Netflix)

• Minhal Baig — “We Grown Now” (Sony Pictures Classics)

• John Crowley — “We Live in Time” (A24)

• Jon M. Chu — “Wicked” (Universal Pictures)

• Chris Sanders — “The Wild Robot” (DreamWorks Animation)

• Ethan Hawke — “Wildcat” (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

• Angelina Jolie — “Without Blood” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Anna Kendrick — “Woman of the Hour” (Netflix)

• José Louren?o — “Young Werther” (No U.S. Distribution) **

• Joachim R?nning — “Young Woman and the Sea” (Walt Disney Pictures)

More Information (Oscars: Best Director)

2024 category winner: Christopher Nolan — “Oppenheimer” (Universal Pictures)

2024-2025 Oscars Calendar and Timeline – Full awards season calendar here

• Eligibility period: Jan. 1, 2024 – Dec. 31, 2024

• General entry, best picture, RAISE submission deadline: Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024

• Governors Awards: Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024

• Preliminary voting begins Monday, Dec. 9, 2024, at 9 a.m. PT.

• Preliminary voting ends Friday, Dec. 13, 2024, at 5 p.m. PT.

• Oscar Shortlists Announcement: Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024

• Eligibility period ends: Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024

• Nominations voting begins Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, at 9 a.m. PT.

• Nominations voting ends Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025, at 5 p.m. PT.

• Oscar Nominations Announcement: Friday, Jan. 17, 2025

• Oscar Nominees Luncheon: Monday, Feb. 10, 2025

• Final voting begins Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, at 9 a.m. PT

• Final voting ends: Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, at 5 p.m. PT

• Scientific and Technical Awards: Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025

• 97th Oscars: Sunday, March 2, 2025

Oscars Prediction Categories

About the Academy Awards

The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, is Hollywood’s most prestigious artistic award in the film industry. Since 1927, nominees and winners have been selected by members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Seventeen branches are represented within the nearly 10,000-person membership. The branches are actors, associates, casting directors, cinematographers, costume designers, directors, documentary, executives, film editors, makeup and hairstylists, marketing and public relations, members-at-large, members-at-large (artists’ representatives), music, producers, production design, short films and feature animation, sound, visual effects and writers.

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