2025 Golden Globes predictions: From 'Wicked' to 'Anora,' who will win?

Is "The Brutalist" building the foundation for a best picture run? Could "Anora" seduce everyone this awards season? Or might those "Wicked" witches defy gravity – and stiff competition – on the way to Oscar glory come March 2?

A new year means a whole new ballgame, and although no movie stands as a massive favorite so far, Sunday's 82nd Golden Globe Awards (CBS, 8 p.m. EST/5 PST, and streaming live on Paramount+ with Showtime) will begin to make the road to the 97th Academy Awards a little clearer. Heavyweights like "Brutalist" and "Conclave" will battle for best drama, while "Anora" and "Wicked" are tussling with "Emilia Pérez" (which boasts a leading 10 nominations) in the best musical/comedy category. And we'll see if Globe-winning A-listers such as Angelina Jolie and Denzel Washington have the golden touch again at this year's event, hosted by comedian Nikki Glaser.

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USA TODAY predicts who will win (and who should) in the top film categories:

Best drama

“The Brutalist”

“A Complete Unknown”

“Conclave”

“Dune: Part Two”

“Nickel Boys”

“September 5”

Will win/should win: "The Brutalist"

It's a strong contingent of dramas, from Bob Dylan biopic "Complete Unknown" to papal thriller "Conclave" to innovative coming-of-age film "Nickel Boys," most of which we'll see again when Oscar nominations arrive later this month. "The Brutalist" was the best movie of 2024 and Brady Corbet's monumental period epic is the head of this class as well, a riveting look at the immigrant experience and a dark take on the American dream.

Best comedy or musical

“Anora”

“Challengers”

“Emilia Pérez”

“A Real Pain”

“The Substance”

“Wicked”

Will win: "Wicked'

Should win: "The Substance"

Bold and showy, the big-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical "Wicked" has won audience's hearts and likely has the edge over Cinderella stripper story "Anora," a critical darling, and the Spanish-language musical crime thriller "Emilia." But come on, there's only one real choice here: the brash, bonkers and bloody brilliant "Substance," a go-for-broke horror movie tackling aging and identity with a never-better Demi Moore.

Best actor in a drama

Adrien Brody, “The Brutalist”

Timothée Chalamet, “A Complete Unknown”

Daniel Craig, “Queer”

Colman Domingo, “Sing Sing”

Ralph Fiennes, “Conclave”

Sebastian Stan, “The Apprentice”

Will win: Brody

Should win: Domingo

Fun fact: Adrien Brody won a best actor Oscar for "The Pianist" in 2003 but didn't win the Globe, losing to Jack Nicholson. It's a safe bet that won't happen here for "The Brutalist," again playing a Holocaust survivor in the tale of a Hungarian-Jewish architect making a life in America. Yet there's no one in this lineup, even a mighty Brody, that matches the sheer emotion and gripping heart of Domingo's theater-loving convict in "Sing Sing."

Best actress in a drama

Pamela Anderson, “The Last Showgirl”

Angelina Jolie, “Maria”

Nicole Kidman, “Babygirl”

Tilda Swinton, “The Room Next Door”

Fernanda Torres, “I’m Still Here”

Kate Winslet, “Lee”

Will win: Jolie

Should win: Kidman

Like "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Judy" before it, the music biopic "Maria" is a case of the performance being better than the movie – in this case, Jolie giving life to opera legend Maria Callas in her final days. The category is hers to lose, even though Kidman has a quietly powerful and quite visceral turn in "Babygirl" as a middle-aged CEO who gets involved with a younger employee and becomes caught up in his kinky games.

Best actor in a comedy or musical

Jesse Eisenberg, “A Real Pain”

Hugh Grant, “Heretic”

Gabriel LaBelle, “Saturday Night”

Jesse Plemons, “Kinds of Kindness”

Glen Powell, “Hit Man”

Sebastian Stan, “A Different Man”

Will win/should win: Stan

There's something to love with all the actors in this group, from rom-com icon Grant as a cleverly crafted horror villain to new Hollywood favorite Powell's best all-around work to date. Then there's Stan, who is downright extraordinary in the meta dark comedy "Different Man" as an aspiring actor with a facial disfigurement who embarks on an experimental treatment that "fixes" him physically but doesn't cure his crippling insecurity.

Best actress in a comedy or musical

Amy Adams, “Nightbitch”

Cynthia Erivo, “Wicked”

Karla Sofía Gascón, “Emilia Pérez”

Mikey Madison, “Anora”

Demi Moore, “The Substance”

Zendaya, “Challengers”

Will win: Madison

Should win: Gascón

This could be the first round of a two-woman best actress Oscar contest between Madison, the acclaimed breakout of "Anora," and Erivo, the impressive heart and soul of "Wicked." Madison has an edge at this point, given the indie love for her role as a feisty Brooklyn sex worker. Yet in this packed field where everyone's pretty fabulous, talented trans newcomer Gascón stands out as a former drug kingpin trying to make amends in her new life as a woman.

Best supporting actor

Yura Borisov, “Anora”

Kieran Culkin, “A Real Pain”

Edward Norton, “A Complete Unknown”

Guy Pearce, “The Brutalist”

Jeremy Strong, “The Apprentice”

Denzel Washington, “Gladiator II”

Will win: Culkin

Should win: Borisov

At least one actor runs the awards-season table all the way to an Oscar win, and thus far the most likely to rule is Culkin, who bounces from his brash "Succession" role to that of a similarly mercurial rabble-rouser on an eye-opening trip in "A Real Pain." However, in this field with great outings also from Norton, Pearce and Washington, Burisov phenomenally takes what's essentially a background henchman role and makes his empathetic thug shine.

Best supporting actress

Selena Gomez, “Emilia Pérez”

Ariana Grande, “Wicked”

Felicity Jones, “The Brutalist”

Margaret Qualley, “The Substance”

Isabella Rossellini, “Conclave”

Zoe Saldana, “Emilia Pérez”

Will win: Grande

Should win: Saldana

Barring some unforeseen surprise, expect the Oscar supporting actress race to come down to either Grande or Saldana, with whoever wins Sunday grabbing the pole position. As much fun as a Qualley upset would be, Grande should get the Globe with her comedically self-obsessed performance as popular girl Glinda. Just don't sleep on Saldana perhaps being the ultimate winner come March, given her complex role (and frequent singing) as a thoughtful lawyer.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Golden Globe predictions 2025: Who from nominations list will win?