Dear Gossips,

We are now exactly two months away from the Oscars, which are happening on March 15, and it’s also nomination campaigning week, as Academy members are currently voting on the nominations, scheduled to be announced a week today on January 22. This means contenders are out there on the circuit, at screenings and cocktails, making sure they get an invitation. Even the frontrunners – like One Battle After Another, the heavy favourite to win Best Picture, aren’t taking any chances.

Paul Thomas Anderson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Teyana Taylor, and Benicio Del Toro were in New York last night at a Q&A for their film with SiriusXM. Leo was already in NYC the night before to receive NBR’s Best Actor award, and he turned his speech into a crusade for the theatrical experience.

This, of course, is one of Hollywood’s most pressing dilemmas right now – and, along with the most successful directors, it’s been the biggest movie stars who’ve taken up the cause, like Tom Cruise and Leo who, to date, have only made content for the big screen and never for streaming. At least not yet. And I can’t really see them doing it either.

On the campaign side for Leo, of course this kind of message would resonate with Oscar voters. So Leo’s definitely going for it, let’s not pretend he doesn’t want it just as bad as the others.

In the best actor race, even though nominations aren’t officially in yet, it’s looking like Leo and Timothée Chalamet are the most likely locks. And as for their odds for the win, right now, it’s a dead heat, a very, very close race. Closer at this point in the season than it was between Timmy and Adrien Brody last year.

Remember, Timmy took the SAG but Adrien ended up with the Oscar and it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out this year, whether or not Academy voters are still holding Timmy’s age against him. Clearly Leo’s not taking any chances.

Yours in gossip,

Lainey

Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio Del Toro, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Teyana Taylor in New York at a Q&A for their film with SiriusXM on January 14, 2026

Photo credits: T.JACKSON / BACKGRID

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