Oscars 2021: Final Predictions In All 23 Categories
17. Best Visual Effects
With the majority of the year's blockbusters cancelled, this was a category that seemed up in the air for a long time. The One and Only Ivan and Love and Monsters definitely benefited from the lack of Marvel instalments over the past year, but it is still nice to see them here.
Mulan makes the cut but after the film's poor response and surrounding controversies, it is unlikely the Academy will want to award it here. Nor should it, with several frames feeling more finished than others.
This is a two-horse race between Tenet and The Midnight Sky who both have very different but also commendable effects work. The Midnight Sky is banking on the Academy's love for realistic space effects (Gravity) but Tenet's work is far more unconventional and that is going to draw the attention of more voters. It is also possibly that certain members of the Academy will want to throw Christopher Nolan a bone for what he tried to do by keeping this film in theatres.
What Should Win: Tenet
What Will Win: Tenet