Way Too Early Oscar Predictions (2017 Edition)

Believe it or not, this week marks the unofficial beginning of Hollywood's awards season. The start of this always intriguing 3-month stretch of the cinematic calendar means that it's time for clowns like myself to dawn our premature prediction hats and drop a list of the films and individuals that we believe the Academy will chose to bless with nominations this year. Below you'll find my way-too-early predictions for the nominees and winners in every major Oscar category. Hope you enjoy this collection of speculation-driven predictions and be sure to check back in the coming weeks/months for some (slightly) more educated guesses.

Note: There are a handful of potential Oscar contenders (The Post, Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson Project, All the Money in the World, The Greatest Showman, The Man Who Invented Christmas, Wonder) that didn't screen at the Venice, Telluride or Toronto Film Festivals that could shake up the field dramatically once they receive public screenings.

*indicates the projected winner
Best Picture:
Blade Runner 2049
Call Me by Your Name
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
Lady Bird
Mudbound
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri* 
The Post

Best Director:
Guillermo Del Toro (The Shape of Water)* 
Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird)
Luca Guadagnino (Call Me by Your Name)
Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)
Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk)

Best Actor:

Christian Bale (Hostiles)
Timothee Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name)

Daniel Day-Lewis (Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson Project)
Tom Hanks (The Post)

Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour)*

Best Actress:
Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water)*
Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)

Margot Robbie (I, Tonya)
Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird)
Meryl Streep (The Post) 

Best Supporting Actor:
Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project)
Armie Hammer (Call Me By Your Name)
Jason Mitchell (Mudbound)
Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)*

Michael Shannon (The Shape of Water)

Best Supporting Actress:
Hong Chau (Downsizing)
Allison Janney (I, Tonya)
Melissa Leo (Novitiate)
Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird)*

Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water)

Best Animated Feature:
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand 
The Lego Batman Movie
Loving Vincent*