The 82nd Annual Golden Globes are almost upon us and between a revamped voting body and categories packed with A-list nominees, the lead-up has been nothing short of a stiff competition.
Will heavyweights like “The Brutalist” and “Conclave” have the golden touch? Could genre-defying “Emilia Pérez” dominate the night or will “Wicked” defy gravity and come out on top?
Here are the Daily News’ predictions for who will take home the trophies in the year’s most-anticipated film categories.
Guy Pearce, Adrien Brody, and Isaach De Bankolé in ‘The Brutalist’ (A24)
Best Motion Picture, Drama
- “The Brutalist”
- “A Complete Unknown”
- “Conclave”
- “Dune: Part Two”
- “Nickel Boys”
- “September 5”
What will win: “The Brutalist”
From mystery-thriller “Conclave” set in the halls of the Vatican to Bob Dylan’s biopic “A Complete Unknown,” it’s undoubtedly a strong contest among this year’s drama nominees. But there’s one film that stands out as arguably the best of 2024, an epic period piece that takes a deep dive into the immigrant experience in America.
“The Brutalist” brilliantly explores the 30-year journey of a Jewish architect who survives the Holocaust and emigrates to the United States, where he’s forced to endure poverty and indignity in search of the American dream.
The film, which director Brady Corbet worked on for seven years, has been hailed by critics and filmmakers from around the world, despite some disapproval over its three-and-a-half-hour runtime.
“This film does everything that we are told we are not allowed to do,” Corbet said during its premiere at the Venice Film Festival, shrugging off the criticism. “[It’s about] how much story there is to tell. … The idea we have to fit into a box is quite silly.”
Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in ‘Wicked’ (Universal Pictures via AP)
Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
- “Anora”
- “Challengers”
- “Emilia Pérez”
- “A Real Pain”
- “The Substance”
- “Wicked”
What will win: “Wicked”
The big-screen adaptation of the popular Broadway musical dominated the box office at the end of the year to become one of the highest-grossing domestic releases ever, even adjusting for inflation.
The blockbuster fantasy, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, earned glowing reviews from audiences and critics alike — and if social media is any indication, fans are still literally singing its praises.
While Cinderella story “Anora,” quirky dramedy “A Real Pain” and musical thriller “Emilia Perez” have all won rave reviews of their own, “Wicked” more than likely has an edge.
Edward Norton, left, and Timothée Chalamet in ‘A Complete Unknown’ (Macall Polay/Searchlight Pictures via AP)
Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama
- Adrien Brody, “The Brutalist”
- Timothée Chalamet, “A Complete Unknown”
- Daniel Craig, “Queer”
- Colman Domingo, “Sing Sing”
- Ralph Fiennes, “Conclave”
- Sebastian Stan, “The Apprentice”
Who will win: Adrien Brody
Adrien Brody — no stranger to winning awards after taking home the Best Actor Oscar in 2003 for his role in the period piece “The Pianist” — will definitely be adding more accolades to his resume this year.
In “The Brutalist,” Brody takes on the role of Jewish Holocaust survivor László Tóth, who struggles to make a life for himself in America following World War II. Despite the film being significantly longer than most, Brody keeps viewers gripped with his nuance and emotional range.
The actor says he took inspiration from his mother, a photographer who fled Europe in 1956 during the Hungarian revolution.
“[She] was a refugee and immigrated to the United States, and much like László, started again and pursued a dream of being an artist,” Brody said at the Venice Film Festival. “I understand a great deal about the repercussions of that on her life … and how post-war psychology influences your work.”
Angelina Jolie in ‘Maria’ (Netflix)
Best Female Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama
- Pamela Anderson, “The Last Showgirl”
- Angelina Jolie, “Maria”
- Nicole Kidman, “Babygirl”
- Tilda Swinton, “The Room Next Door”
- Fernanda Torres, “I’m Still Here”
- Kate Winslet, “Lee”
Who will win: Angelina Jolie
The fight for Best Female Actor in a Drama ultimately comes down to Oscar winners Angelina Jolie and Nicole Kidman.
While Kidman was terrific as a New York CEO who embarks on an affair with a much younger intern in “Babygirl,” it was Jolie in “Maria” that delivered the most impact in 2024.
Her stunning performance has been at the forefront of award show chatter since the biopic’s debut at the Venice Film Festival in August, where her turn as renowned opera star Maria Callas garnered an eight-minute standing ovation.
Portraying the legendary soprano and diving deep into the opera world was “therapy I didn’t realize I needed,” she said at a press conference. “I had no idea how much I was holding in and not letting out. The challenge wasn’t the technical; it was an emotional experience to find my voice, to be in my body, to express. You have to give every single part of yourself.”
Sebastian Stan in ‘A Different Man’ (A24)
Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
- Jesse Eisenberg, “A Real Pain”
- Hugh Grant, “Heretic”
- Gabriel LaBelle, “Saturday Night”
- Jesse Plemons, “Kinds of Kindness”
- Glen Powell, “Hit Man”
- Sebastian Stan, “A Different Man”
Who will win: Sebastian Stan
From Hugh Grant playing a horror villain in “Heretic” to Glen Powell as a strait-laced professor moonlighting as a hitman, every actor in this category is beloved for their own reasons. But we’ve got to stan Sebastian Stan in “A Different Man.”
In the dark comedy, Stan portrays a struggling actor with neurofibromatosis, a genetic condition that causes his face to be disfigured. After undergoing an experimental procedure to drastically transform his appearance, he assumes a new identity — but finds that “new dream face quickly turns into a nightmare.”
Best Female Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical
- Amy Adams, “Nightbitch”
- Cynthia Erivo, “Wicked”
- Karla Sofía Gascón, “Emilia Pérez”
- Mikey Madison, “Anora”
- Demi Moore, “The Substance”
- Zendaya, “Challengers”
Who will win: Cynthia Erivo
Though Mikey Madison is widely seen as a frontrunner for her role as a sex worker searching for her fairytale in “Anora,” it’s Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in “Wicked” that will surely take lead.
Despite the story of Elphaba being one that many viewers are familiar with, Erivo managed to give the green-skinned character new meaning in the blockbuster musical, magically pairing a soaring vocal performance with raw emotional depth.
Erivo has said that she hopes her turn as Elphaba is “a bit of a love letter to everyone who feels different, who feels out of place, to all of the Black women who have walked into rooms and felt like they haven’t been welcomed. To anyone who’s walked into a room and felt like they haven’t been welcomed.”