Stars walk the red carpet; Conan O’Brien set to host

The stars are out for Hollywood’s biggest night. With another whirlwind awards season coming to a close, celebs are gathering one last time for the glitziest, most anticipated ceremony of them all: the 98th Academy Awards.

Hosted by Conan O’Brien, the awards show will celebrate a year of critically acclaimed films and standout performances from a wide range of stars. This year, especially, predicting who will win across an array of categories has proven no easy feat.

Sinners leads the pack with a record-breaking 16 nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director nods for Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler, respectively. Also making a splash at the 2026 Oscars is Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, which received 13 nominations. Sentimental Value, led by Renate Reinsve and Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet, have nine nods apiece.

History is poised to be made during tonight’s awards show. In addition to receiving a record number of nominations, Sinners could break the all-time record for most Oscar wins in a single night if it succeeds in at least 12 categories. Sinners director of photography Autumn Durald Arkapaw could also become the first woman and first Black cinematographer to win Best Cinematography, while Coogler could become the first Black filmmaker to win Best Director.

Should he win Best Actor, The Secret Agent star Wagner Moura could become the first Brazilian to win in an acting category. Hamnet filmmaker Chloé Zhao could also make history tonight as the first woman to win Best Director twice.

The show kicks off at 7 p.m. ET, following our red carpet coverage below.