Whichever movies go home with the little golden man at the 94th annual Academy Awards Sunday night, streaming services already are the winners. Netflix has a total of 27 nominations, with Apple following with six, Amazon Prime with four and Hulu with one.

But when it comes to individual movies, this year’s race is turning out to be more inscrutable. What at first seemed like a night of many sure things is becoming less certain. With this in mind, here are a few predictions in the major categories.

Picture

Nominees:“Belfast”; “CODA”; “Don’t Look Up”; “Drive My Car”; “Dune”; “King Richard”; “Licorice Pizza”; “Nightmare Alley”; “The Power of the Dog”; “West Side Story”

At first, “The Power of the Dog,” Jane Campion’s disturbing twist on the machismo of the Western, seemed to be the shoo-in. It won best film at the BAFTAs (the British Oscars), Broadcast Critics Choice Awards and at the Golden Globes. Lately though, “CODA” — a heartwarming story about the only hearing child in a deaf family — might be within nipping distance of the heels of this “Dog.” It has momentum after nabbing the outstanding cast honor at the SAG Awards. The other element “CODA” has going for it is timing. With the world in such a wretched state, Oscar voters might be more willing to acknowledge an undeniable feel-good movie over an austere art-house entry. Also, it would also make history as the first movie with a largely deaf main cast to be crowned best picture so this could be a blow for representation, too. The race between “Dog” and “CODA” leaves my personal favorite, “Dune,” out in the cold.

Should win:“Dune”

Will win:“CODA”

Director

Nominees:Kenneth Branagh, “Belfast”; Ryusuke Hamaguchi, “Drive My Car”; Paul Thomas Anderson, “Licorice Pizza”; Jane Campion, “The Power of the Dog”; Steven Spielberg, “West Side Story”

If “The Power of the Dog” fails to take the big prize, it seems assured it will get this one. Campion won the Directors Guild prize as well as the director’s award at the BAFTAs and the Golden Globes. For her, this will be the end of a long journey. The Australian filmmaker has been releasing features since “Sweetie” in 1989 and, in 1994, became only the second woman ever to receive an Oscar nomination for best director with “The Piano.” (She lost to Steven Spielberg for “Schindler’s List.”) And now she is the only woman to be nominatedtwicefor best director.

Should win:Jane Campion

Will win:Jane Campion

International feature

Nominees:“Drive My Car,” Japan; “Flee,” Denmark; “The Hand of God,” Italy; “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom,” Bhutan; “The Worst Person in the World,” Norway

这是一个最具竞争力的目前ries, with three of these films getting nods in other categories, a rarity for non-English-speaking movies. “Drive My Car” is up for best picture, director and adapted screenplay, while “Flee” is contending in animated feature and documentary. The absolutely winning rom-com-with-an-edge “The Worst Person in the World” is also up for original screenplay. But the momentum appears to be with Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s quiet, three-hour meditation on death, art and grief, though the moving and based-on-a-true-story “Flee,” about a young, gay man escaping certain brutality in Afghanistan and Russia, seems tailor-made for these times.

Should win:“Flee”

Will win:“Drive My Car”

Actor

Nominees:Javier Bardem, “Being the Ricardos”; Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Power of the Dog”; Andrew Garfield, “tick, tick…Boom!”; Denzel Washington, “The Tragedy of Macbeth”; Will Smith, “King Richard”

There are some knockout performances here, especially from Garfield, Washington and Smith. But it’s Smith’s performance as Richard Williams, the father of tennis superstars Venus and Serena, that has charmed the industry. He won the BAFTA, Golden Globe and the SAG Award and, in Hollywood terms, he’s extremely likable. So, after having so many years in the business, Smith probably will find himself walking away with some gold Sunday night.

Should win:Denzel Washington

Will win:Will Smith

Actress

Nominees:Jessica Chastain, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”; Olivia Colman, “The Lost Daughter”; Penélope Cruz, “Parallel Mothers”; Nicole Kidman, “Being the Ricardos”; Kristen Stewart, “Spencer”

A few months ago, Kristen Stewart as Lady Di in “Spencer” was an odds-on favorite. What could be more Oscar bait than a biopic about a deceased person whom the entire world loves? But the movie faded from view and other performances moved into the spotlight, especially those of Chastain (who won the SAG Award and the Broadcast Critics Choice Award), Kidman (who won the Golden Globe) and Colman, who is well-regarded within Hollywood.

Should win:Penélope Cruz

Will win:Jessica Chastain

Supporting actor

Nominees:Ciaran Hinds, “Belfast”; Troy Kotsur, “CODA”; Jesse Plemons, “The Power of the Dog”; J.K. Simmons, “Being the Ricardos”; Kodi Smit-McPhee, “The Power of the Dog”

Simmons turned in one of my favorite performances of the year as the irascible William Frawley in “Being the Ricardos.” But there’s no denying the power of Kotsur’s turn in “CODA,” and he has already been rewarded with the BAFTA, Spirit Award and the SAG Award in this category. He is the first deaf man to be nominated in an Oscar acting category. (Marlee Matlin, who is also in “CODA,” won the best actress honor in 1987 for “Children of a Lesser God.”)

Should win:J.K. Simmons

Will win:Troy Kotsur

Supporting actress

Nominees:Jessie Buckley, “The Lost Daughter”; Ariana DeBose, “West Side Story”; Judi Dench, “Belfast”; Kirsten Dunst, “The Power of the Dog”; Aunjanue Ellis, “King Richard.”

There must be an alternative universe where Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” is doing what many pundits had predicted by becoming a box-office smash and raking in a staggering number of Oscar nominations. It’s Spielberg after all! But that’s not the world we live in, and the only category the relative flop has a chance of winning is with Ariana DeBose’s absolutely electric portrayal of Anita.

Should win:Ariana DeBose

Will win:Ariana DeBose

cary.darling@chron.com