Here's everything you need to know about the 2026 Academy Awards.Mario Anzuoni/Reuters
The 98th Academy Awards – also known as the Oscars – are right around the corner. Almost everyone in Hollywood vies for the opportunity to be nominated and win the most prestigious award in the industry.
Sinners, Ryan Coogler’s horror film, leads the nominations this year, with a record-breaking 16.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2026 Oscars.
What do you think about the 2026 Oscars? Ask us your questions
How can I watch the 2026 Oscars in Canada?
In Canada, the Oscars will be broadcast on CTV and streamed simultaneously on Crave. In the U.S., it’ll be shown on ABC.
The ceremony will start at 7 p.m. ET.
When is the red carpet?
The official red carpet preshow starts at 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, 30 minutes before the main ceremony, on CTV and Crave.
Etalk’s red carpet coverage will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET, and will air on Crave and YouTube.
Meet Canada’s red-carpet power stylists
Where is the Oscars?
The awards are held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
Who’s hosting the Oscars?
Conan O'Brien will host the Oscars for the second year in a row.Chris Pizzello/The Associated Press
Comedian Conan O’Brien is hosting the ceremony for the second year straight. He was announced as the 2026 host two weeks after the 2025 ceremony.
“The only reason I’m hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech,” O’Brien said in a statement last March.
O’Brien attracted the award show’s biggest broadcast audience in five years, pulling in an estimated 19.7 million viewers. It was the most-watched prime-time television broadcast of the year outside of professional sports.
Which films are nominated for best picture this year?
"Sinners" is one of the 10 films nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures/The Canadian Press
There are 10 films nominated for best picture: Bugonia, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners and Train Dreams.
While Sinners leads the nominations, One Battle After Another – Paul Thomas Anderson’s epic about the pleasures and perils of a revolutionary life – feels like a lock for the night’s biggest prize. Anderson’s film has picked up almost every major precursor award honouring the year’s best movie, except for best ensemble at the Actor Awards (awarded to Sinners).
The Oscars expanded the number of films nominated for best picture in 2009, to a maximum of 10 from five.
You can see a full list of nominees for all 24 categories here.
Where to watch all the 2026 Oscars best-picture nominees in Canada
Who are the front-runners for the Oscars’ acting awards?
Teyana Taylor as Perfidia in One Battle After Another.Warner Bros.
The awards for the acting categories are not locks (outside of Jessie Buckley’s performance in Hamnet for best actress). Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another) started the award season off strong for best supporting actress, but she’ll have major competition from Amy Madigan (Weapons) and Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners). Sean Penn (One Battle After Another) already has two Oscar statues to his name, but might edge out Stellan Skarsgard (Sentimental Value) for best supporting actor.
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Even murkier: the battle for best actor between Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme) and Michael B. Jordan (Sinners). Neither star has won an Oscar, and up until last month it seemed to be Chalamet’s to lose. But the Sinners star, who had a dual role as two brothers, has the twin factor playing to his advantage: Oscars voters putting their stamp of endorsement on Jordan can feel as if they’re actually highlighting two performances instead of just one.
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Who is presenting at the Oscars?
Paul Mescal is one of the Oscars presenters.Agata Grzybowska/The Associated Press
Presenters for the acting awards are usually given by the year’s previous winners in the specific category, so expect to see Zoe Saldaña, Mikey Madison, Adrien Brody and Kieran Culkin.
Other stars presenting awards include Robert Downey Jr., Anne Hathaway, Chase Infiniti and Paul Mescal.
Who votes for the Oscars?
Oscars voters are eligible members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. To become a member, you must be invited by the board.
Films must hit certain criteria to be eligible, including being released in the year they are being nominated and having a theatrical qualifying run of at least seven consecutive days in the same theatre in a designated U.S. metropolitan area. The movies must then be submitted for formal consideration.
Most of the 24 award categories are voted on by eligible members of the corresponding branch. For example, costume designers can vote for best costume design, but not best sound. Best picture is an exception and can be voted on by any eligible members.
In April, 2025, the Academy mandated that members are required to watch all nominated films in each category to be eligible to vote in the final round. Previously, voters had only been encouraged to watch the nominees, then vote in categories for which they felt qualified.
What’s the difference between the Golden Globes and the Oscars?
The Golden Globes and the Oscars are determined by two separate voting bodies and awarded at different ceremonies.
The Globes’ voters are entertainment journalists from around the world.
The Oscars focus on all aspects of film, including acting, screenplays, casting and various technical achievements. The Golden Globes focus mainly on acting across film and television, but the annual honours can be indicators of who or what will win or be nominated for an Oscar.
The Golden Globes typically kick off Hollywood’s award season in January; the Oscars conclude the season. Here are all of the awards given at this year’s Golden Globes ceremony.
With files from Barry Hertz and the Associated Press