The group stages of the Oscars will begin this week, after the tournament officially kicks off tomorrow.
The opening match-up is Steven Spielberg’s much-fancied The Fabelmans up against rank outsider Pearl, the A-24 prequel to X.
“Now that seems like a lock for The Fabelmans, but you never know. These early stages of the Oscars throw up some real surprises,” said Academy spokesperson Stewart James.
“Remember last year, pre-tournament favourite We Don’t Talk About Bruno was knocked out of the Best Song category in the group stages. So, we’ll see.”
The Oscars controversially adopted the tournament format for the 2019 Awards.
“It’s a bit of a longer process than it used to be, but it’s winter, right? What else is everyone going to do,” laughed Stewart.
The group stages have thrown up some interesting match-ups, with Terrifier 2 in the same group as Downton Abby: A New Era, and a real derby as Netflix’s Pinocchio goes up against Disney’s Pinocchio.
“I’m really excited, this is my favourite part of the awards, where you start to see what films pick up momentum, and the one’s you thought were really strong start to fade away. I think this is going to be a great tournament this year.”
The full Oscar groups stages will be screened live on the Academy website, and are expected to be watched by one or possibly even two people, with that audience doubling when it comes to the Academy Awards, or ‘Finals’, that take place in February next year.
Some links to other bits of the blog that you’ll love*…
*Alright, perhaps ‘love’ is pushing it, maybe ‘be mildly diverted by’
Want to know what’s on telly this next week? No problem, click on this TV Film Guide
Want to impress friends with your superior film knowledge? You’ll be wanting the Fun Facts page.
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