'Oppenheimer' favoured for best picture at star-studded Oscars

Hollywood A-listers are set to party with "Barbie" and lavish awards on Christopher Nolan's atomic blockbuster "Oppenheimer" at the Oscars, the biggest night in showbiz.

Stars will hit the famous red carpet at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday before the gala hosted by late-night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel.

Nolan's drama about the inventor of the nuclear age, half of last summer's massive "Barbenheimer" phenomenon, is the firm favourite to win the prize for best picture and much more.

With an overdue director, stellar cast, commercial and critical success, and urgent subject matter, "there is no justifiable reason to predict anything else," said Hollywood Reporter awards columnist Scott Feinberg.

Variety awards editor Clayton Davis said "Oppenheimer" is the "biggest lock" to win best picture since the final "Lord of the Rings" film two decades ago.

It is tipped to take golden statuettes for best director, supporting actor for Robert Downey Jr., and technical prizes from cinematography and editing to sound and score.

The film has a strong chance at best actor honours for Cillian Murphy, who is locked in a tight race with Paul Giamatti of "The Holdovers," and could claim best-adapted screenplay too.

"It just had everything, the scale, the scope, the importance," said one Oscar voter, who asked to remain anonymous as Academy members are instructed not to discuss their ballots.

"This is the year for 'Oppenheimer,'" the voter told AFP.

Elsewhere, the competition for best actress promises to be a nail-biter.

Emma Stone, who previously won an Academy Award for "La La Land," gives a stunning, daring performance in the surreal, Frankenstein-esque "Poor Things."

But Lily Gladstone of "Killers of the Flower Moon" has not just the clout of her director Martin Scorsese, but the weight of history behind her.

She is seeking to become the first Native American to win an acting Oscar.

'Pink carpet'

And what about "Barbie," released on the same weekend last summer as "Oppenheimer," prompting a bizarre and highly memeable double bill that collectively grossed $2.4B worldwide?

The surreal feminist comedy is likely to earn technical prizes including costume design, and boasts the two frontrunners for best original song.

Both Billie Eilish's "What Was I Made For?" and the movie's show-stopping "I'm Just Ken" will be performed during the Oscars gala.

Supporting actor nominee Ryan Gosling's first-ever live performance of his character's signature power ballad is likely to be a standout moment.

With Margot Robbie nominated as a producer, America Ferrera as a supporting actress, and Greta Gerwig for the screenplay, the cast and crew of "Barbie" are expected to turn the Oscars' famous red carpet a bright shade of pink.

Da'Vine Joy Randolph ("The Holdovers") is the firm favourite to win for best supporting actress, while race satire "American Fiction" could dampen the "Oppenheimer" sweep with adapted screenplay honours.

In the best documentary, a win for "20 Days in Mariupol" should help redirect attention — however momentarily — to the war in Ukraine.

The United Kingdom is expecting its first-ever best international film Oscar, with the Auschwitz drama "The Zone of Interest."

Japanese cinema has "Godzilla Minus One" tipped to win best visual effects, and "The Boy and the Heron" vying for best-animated feature, where it will battle against "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse."

Kimmel is returning to helm the Oscars for a fourth time. His highly praised hosting last year helped boost ratings back to nearly double their pandemic-era lows.

The 96th Academy Awards begin at 2300 GMT.