Opening Oscars 2020 Odds: Once Upon A Time in Hollywood Favored; Joker Listed at +550

• Early odds are in for the 2020 Academy Awards for Best Picture
• Huge Hollywood films and indie flicks are vying for nomination and, ultimately, the award itself
• Nominations are announced January 13, 2020 with the Academy Awards on February 9, 2020

Since 1929, filmmakers and stars have been awarded for their work by presenting those little golden statues known as Oscars. They’ve gone on to become the most coveted prize in the film world.

There is truly no bigger honor in Hollywood than to have your film win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The award–presented to the film’s producer(s)– is the highest achievement in the industry.

With just a few months of eligibility left, the Oscars will be here within a blink. And it’s very likely the future winner of Best Picture has already been released. But which one is it?

2020 Academy Awards Best Picture Odds

Odds taken 09/12/19.

This year’s favorite is, of course, Quentin Tarantino’s glitzy drama Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. The film was not only a massive hit but is very obvious Oscar fare.

The age-old adage is true: Hollywood loves films about Hollywood. And this film certainly fills that quota. Tarantino may have even been Oscar-baiting when he crafted this film from scratch. If that was his plan, it certainly worked.

Tarantino’s Hollywood is both a celebration of the industry itself as well as a fully amplified vision of the past. It’s fun, it’s clever, and it’s different from everything else that was released this year.

Certainly, Tarantino has the edge here and it’s no stretch of the imagination to picture him waltzing up to the stage to collect his trophy. But in the world of the Academy Awards, anything can happen.

Up and Comers

Nope, Tarantino isn’t out of the woods quite yet if he things this thing is a for sure lock. This year we’ve seen plenty of amazing films that would all be worthy choices for Best Picture. Some of them may not have even hit theatres yet.

The upcoming Joker (releasing October 4) is also a serious contender. From the looks of what we’ve seen of Joker so far, this is not your average comic book film. Taking Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight series and amplifying it into Oscar territory, the film sees Joaquin Phoenix in full-on dramatic crazy mode.

Another upcoming flick that could possibly win is director Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story. Boasting a star-studded cast including Adam Driver, Laura Dern, and Scarlett Johansson (just to name a few), Baumbach’s film is in serious Oscar territory here.

From the looks of what we’ve seen of Joker so far, this is not your average comic book film.

Then there’s The Irishman. The upcoming Martin Scorsese film (releasing on Netflix in November) is slated for a running time of three and a half hours. Make no mistake: the Academy goes wild for a film with a lengthy running time.

But even duration aside, Scorsese is an easy sell for the Academy Awards. He has a stellar Oscar history, and this film both stars Oscar favorites (Robert De Niro, Anna Paquin, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci) and features subject matter The Academy tends to enjoy.

The Rest of the Best

There are plenty of other contenders in the mix too. Let’s not count them out quite yet.

We have indie director Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Little Women which has already been garnering all sorts of attention. Women features a massive ensemble cast and is slated to be the most impeccable telling of the classic tale to date.

The Tom Hanks-starring Fred Rogers biopic A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is also a high possibility in this category. Last year, we saw a documentary about Mr. Rogers, but this year he gets the Hollywood treatment.

A few long shots in the category appear too. Marvel’s blockbuster Avengers: Endgame is the most successful film of all time as far as blockbusters go. But does it stand a chance to win an Oscar? Unlikely.

Playing the Field

It’s also very possible that an as-yet-unreleased or otherwise-not-mentioned film could leap in and sweep this category.

In wake of the #MeToo movement, it would be no surprise to see Bombshell take this category. With a star-studded cast including Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman, and Charlize Theron, it’s destined to be a smash. Considering it’s a film taking down the patriarchy, it’s also extremely timely.

There’s also The Good Liar, Bill Condon’s upcoming drama starring Helen Mirren and Ian McKellan. Another possibility is the Christmas Day-releasing drama Just Mercy, in which Brie Larson, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Foxx tackle the heavy subject of wrongful imprisonment.

Pick: Once Upon A Time in Hollywood (+430)