Oscars Betting 2023: Academy Awards Preview, Best Odds and Tips

Daire Walsh

It might be months until the ceremony takes place, but betting sites are nonetheless offering their take on who will come out on top at the 95th Academy Awards next March.

Following the unveiling of the Golden Globe nominations recently – ahead of that body’s awards ceremony on January 10 of next year – there is now a clearer picture as to what we can expect to be shortlisted by the Academy a couple of months later.

While success at the former doesn’t necessarily lead to a night of triumph at the latter – the Globes are chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, whereas the Oscars are chosen by a wide range of Academy members – it is unlikely that many films will suddenly emerge out of left field either side of the holiday season.

Traditionally speaking, there are said to be four gongs that generate the most interest at the Academy Awards; Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Picture and Best Director.

Given how hotly-anticipated each of these Oscar categories are, we will examine how the most popular bookmakers are viewing them at the present time.

Fraser Favourite For Best Actor

Having drifted away from the Hollywood limelight for personal reasons, American-Canadian actor Brendan Fraser is gaining significant notice for his lead role in Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale.

The Academy have rewarded comeback stories in the past and while the film itself hasn’t gained universal praise thus far, there is a lot of goodwill towards Fraser.

You’ll find Oscars betting of just 8/11 on the former star of The Mummy franchise coming away with the prize for Best Actor.

Elsewhere, Colin Farrell is at 5/1 for his performance in The Banshees of Inisherin.

The Irishman previously won a Golden Globe for In Bruges under the direction of Banshees helmer Martin McDonagh, but missed out on an Oscar nomination.

However, it seems likely that his latest work with McDonagh will see him dusting off his tuxedo for a trip to the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Elsewhere, Austin Butler is rated as a 11/2 Best Actor possibility for his performance as Elvis Presley in the musical biopic Elvis.

Many previous winners of the awards have been honoured for playing historical figures and for this reason Butler can’t be ruled out.

Blanchett Leading The Best Actress Running

A winner in the category for 2014’s Blue Jasmine, Cate Blanchett is the early favourite at 6/4 with BetVictor to secure Best Actress for her role in Tár.

She also won Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of four-time Oscar winner Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator and with seven nominations in total over the course of an excellent career to date, it is hard to look past the Australian star.

That said, Michelle Yeoh is receiving plenty of acclaim for her performance in the comedy-drama Everything Everywhere All at Once.

She has also been shortlisted in the Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical category at the Golden Globes and UK bookmakers are currently rating the Malaysian actress’ Oscar chances at 4/1.

Michelle Williams has been nominated for no fewer than four Oscars since 2006 – two each in the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories.

She is in the hunt at the Golden Globes for a leading performance in Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans and is 7/1 shot to finally earn top honours at the ceremony.

Passion Project In Line To Be Named Year’s Best

Given his previous success at the Academy Awards – and the fact his latest cinematic offering is semi-autobiographical in nature – Spielberg and his producing partners Tony Kushner and Kristie Macosko Krieger are heavily favoured for the Best Picture Oscar next March.

Coral are offering odds of 6/4 on The Fabelmans becoming the US filmmaker’s second film – after Schindler’s List – to win Best Picture.

The aforementioned Everything Everywhere All at Once is rated at 7/2 with the same bookmaker and could well prove to be a strong contender on Oscar night.

Additionally, the best specials and entertainment betting sites are placing values of 6/1 and 8/1 respectively on The Banshees of Inisherin and Babylon emerging as the Best Picture winner.

Spielberg In The Shake-Up For Third Directing Gong

After being previously honoured for Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan, Spielberg is a strong favourite to pick up a third Best Director Oscar for The Fabelmans.

At the time of writing, Betfair were offering 3/10 on him being the pick of this year’s filmmakers.

However, his latest offering isn’t on general release just yet, James Cameron is 6/1 to be rewarded for Avatar: The Way of Water.

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert served as co-directors on Everything Everywhere All at Once and Betfair are rating their Best Director chances at 7/1.

While being the lead in an awards-courting film is deserving of recognition, a strong supporting cast also plays a major part in its overall success – both critically and commercially.

Quan And Buckley In The Hunt For Acting Oscars

Some heavyweight names have been honoured in the Best Supporting Actor category in the past – the likes of Morgan Freeman, Christoph Waltz and Tommy Lee Jones spring to mind – but it is Ke Huy Quan who is the big favourite with betting apps for this gong in 2023.

Best known for his roles as a child actor in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and The Goonies, Quan returned to prominence thanks to his performance as Waymond Wang in Everything Everywhere All at Once and is rated at 4/11 to see off the claims of Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin) and Paul Dano (The Fabelmans).

Bookmakers are also looking at the market for Best Supporting Actress and it is two Irish stars who are currently leading the way in the betting for this category.

Jessie Buckley is rated at 5/4 to win an Oscar for Sarah Polley’s Women Talking, whereas there are odds of 5/2 on Kerry Condon being honoured for The Banshees of Inisherin.