Every Academy Awards brings tears, laughs and unexpected viral moments, but the 97th instalment of Hollywood’s night of nights is the most intriguing in living memory.
And that’s because it comes after an unprecedented period of chaos, and just days after the shock death of two-time Oscar winner Gene Hackman.
From the devastating Los Angeles wildfires and the lingering effects of writers and actors strikes, to the election of Donald Trump, Tinseltown has faced some of its greatest challenges since it became the epicentre of the film industry.
If that wasn’t enough, this year’s event has also been mired in controversy.
THOSE TWEETS
Musical thriller Emilia Perez and its star, Karla Sofia Gascon, the first openly trans performer to be nominated for an Oscar, were on track to make history.
Then Gascon’s historic tweets were uncovered, revealing racist and xenophobic remarks about Muslims, George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars.
It utterly ruined Gascon’s chances in the best actress category, but it will be fascinating to see if voters hold it against co-star Zoe Saldana, who is up for best supporting actress, or the movie itself, which leads all films with 13 nominations, including best picture.
DEAD SET CERTAINTY
Dear Oscar engravers, it’s Kieran with a “K” and Culkin with a “C”.
Nothing is more certain than the actor who famously played Roman Roy in Succession picking up the best supporting actor for his performance in A Real Pain.
Not only does he deserve it, after a brilliant turn in writer-director Jesse Eisenberg’s film, but we deserve to hear another acceptance speech like the one he delivered last week at the SAG Awards.
TRUMP FACTOR
We know Donald Trump has a penchant for rage-watching a show while posting about it on social media.
And this year’s ceremony is guaranteed to have Mr Trump’s thumbs furiously tapping, not least because it features acting nominations for Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong, who co-starred in The Apprentice.
Trump tried to block the release last year of Ali Abbasi’s film, which is a deeply unflattering origin story.
While it’s hard to see Stan or Strong winning their respective categories (Kendall Roy will lose out to Roman!), it’s even harder to see the US President letting those losses go by without comment.
LATE CHARGE
For most of this awards cycle, Adrien Brody looked to have a stranglehold on the best actor Oscar for his performance in The Brutalist, a sprawling 202-minute epic about a Holocaust survivor fighting for his piece of the American Dream.
But it suddenly became a two-horse race when Timothee Chalamet won this category at last week’s SAG Awards for playing a young Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, which sees the actor singing the songs himself.
Brody is asked to do a lot more, and does so magnificently, but there’s no doubt fewer academy members watched The Brutalist, and that could open the door for Chalamet to pull off an upset.
CLOSE RACE
With Gascon out of the frame for best actress, it is almost too close to call, with Demi Moore’s career-best turn in The Substance vying with rising star Mikey Madison’s star-crossed call girl in Anora.
The Substance is one of the wildest films of last year, and a stunning inclusion in the best picture category, while Anora brings huge awards-season buzz for Madison and director Sean Baker, a darling of American indie filmmaking.
Will the Academy reward the veteran for a brave performance, or crown the ingenue — both powerful narratives in Hollywood.
But don’t sleep on Fernanda Torres (I’m Still Here).
TOP GONGS
Best director and best picture are where the real intrigue is, with the former category being fought by a collection of filmmakers who have never previously received an Oscar nomination — that hasn’t happened since 1998.
Of the 10 films battling for best picture, four can probably win it (Anora, The Brutalist, Conclave and Emilia Perez).
Brady Corbet’s work on The Brutalist is incredibly impressive, and could sway voters, but it’s easy to see the preferential voting system for best picture favouring Anora, and thus the very real possibility that Baker gets the best director/best picture double.
AUSSIES IN ACTION
Australia is well represented this year, with Guy Pearce a worthy nominee for best supporting actor as the antagonist in The Brutalist.
Oscar-winning animator Adam Elliot is up for best animated feature for Memoir of a Snail, while Greig Fraser’s work on Dune: Part Two has him in the running for best cinematographer, and Maya Gnyp’s I Am Ready, Warden is nominated for best documentary short film.
THE OTHER STUFF
How will first-time host Conan O’Brien handle the brief? Will Wicked fans be content with a few Oscars in the technical categories and a show-stopper from Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.
And who wins the red carpet? Spoiler alert: Colman Domingo.
The 97th Academy Awards starts at 8am on Monday on Channel 7 and Seven Plus.