Oscars 2020: Predicting All The Nominees
8. Original Score
Best Original Score is an annually frustrating category if only due to the number of great scores which are disqualified for often baffling or petty reasons.
Robbie Robertson's fantastic work on The Irishman was deemed ineligible by the Academy for not having enough original music, along with Knives Out and The Two Popes.
Thomas Newman's fantastically urgent score for 1917 and Hildur Guðnadóttir's Golden Globe-winning work on Joker are guaranteed nominees, though the other three slots are up for grabs.
Even though Randy Newman's score for Marriage Story is blatantly borrowed from his own work on Toy Story 3, its emotional impact will probably secure it a slot, while Academy darling Alexandre Desplat should net a spot for Little Women's evocative music.
The fifth slot is a toughie, with possibles being Michael Abels' creative score for Us, the much-loved Michael Giacchino's memorable work on Jojo Rabbit, and voters may also want to give John Williams a consolation nod for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, despite it probably being the least-memorable of the sequel trilogy's scores.
We'll go with Williams for sentiment's sake, but he's by no means a dead cert.
Nominees:
1917
Joker
Little Women
Marriage Story
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker