2021 Oscar Predictions: SUPPORTING ACTRESS (November)
Aw, nerts! We’ve got a new #1 this month and it’s Amanda Seyfried in Mank. We’ve had a few films feature early silver screen star Marion Davies before but this is the first time she’s been put in the Oscar spotlight and Seyfried’s buoyant performance is just the kind to tickle the fancy of even the most fickle Academy voter.
Olivia Colman (now officially slated as supporting for The Father) and Ellen Burstyn (Pieces of a Woman) both rise and claim the #2 and #3 spots while doting grandmother Youn Yuh-jung (Minari) holds on at #4.
However, it’s former frontrunner Glenn Close (Hillbilly Elegy) who takes a big tumble this month; dropping from the top spot to barely hanging on at #5. The reviews for the film have been savage although the general filmgoer response has been considerably better (it debuted on Netflix November 24) and both agree that Close is a standout who comes out mostly unscathed. Still, even though we’ve had Oscar winners come from low-rated films before (hello, Rami Malek), it’s gonna be Close but no cigar.
Maria Bakalova, from Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm, makes the month’s sole debut as Amazon Studios wisely chooses to place her here in supporting despite being a true co-lead of the film. She’ll need a lot of support to work her way into the top 5 (like a Golden Globe nomination, some critics’ notices) but it’s entirely possible for a performance that not only introduced the world to a new talent but shook politics in an already volatile election year.
Here are my ranked 2021 Oscar predictions in Supporting Actress for November.
Green – moves up; Red – moves down; Blue – new entry this month
1. Amanda Seyfried – Mank (Netflix)
2. Olivia Colman – The Father (Sony Pictures Classics)
3. Ellen Burstyn – Pieces of a Woman (Netflix)
4. Youn Yuh-jung – Minari (A24)
5. Glenn Close – Hillbilly Elegy (Netflix)
6. Helena Zengel – News of the World (Universal Pictures)
7. Saoirse Ronan – Ammonite (Neon)
8. Maria Bakalova – Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm (Amazon Studios)
9. Charlene Swankie – Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures)
10. Lesley Manville – Let Him Go (Focus Features)
Other Contenders: Toni Collette – I’m Thinking of Ending Things (Netflix), Olivia Cooke – Sound of Metal (Amazon Studios), Jodie Foster – The Mauritanian (STX Entertainment), Dominique Fishback – Judas and the Black Messiah (Warner Bros), Priyanka Chopra Jones – The White Tiger (Netflix), Nicole Kidman – The Prom (Netflix), Natasha Lyonne – The United States vs Billie Holiday (Paramount), Valerie Mahaffey – French Exit (Sony Pictures Classics), Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The United States vs. Billie Holiday (Paramount Pictures), Talia Ryder – Never Rarely Sometimes Always (Focus Features), Marisa Tomei – The King of Staten Island (Universal Pictures), Olivia Williams – The Father (Sony Pictures Classics), Debra Winger – Kajillionaire (Focus Features)
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
- 2026 Cannes Film Festival Winners: Cristian Mingiu’s ‘Fjord’ Takes the Palme, Seventh Win in a Row for NEON - May 23, 2026
- Cannes 2026: Sandra Wollner’s ‘Everytime’ Wins Un Certain Regard Grand Prize - May 22, 2026
- ‘Coward’ Review: Belgian Soldiers Find Love in Lukas Dhont’s Hidden Romance Masterpiece [A] Cannes - May 21, 2026
AwardsWatch Podcast Ep. 345: Recapping the 79th Cannes Film Festival and Looking to the Awards Future 
‘The Beloved’ Review: Javier Bardem Makes a Meal Out of Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s Movie-Making Buffet [B] 
‘The Dreamed Adventure’ Review: Valeska Grisebach’s Observant Thriller Examines the Grey Zones of Morality [B+] 
‘Minotaur’ Review: Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Timeless, Domestic Epic is an Unflinching Look at Putin’s Russia [A] Cannes