The incredible 12-year streak Kieran Culkin would break if he wins the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor
Culkin is the hot favorite to win Best Supporting Actor, for his turn in Jesse Eisenberg’s ‘A Real Pain’.
Oscars frontrunner Kieran Culkin can snap a more than decade-long Academy Awards sequence if, as expected, the 42-year-old takes home a golden statuette this weekend.
Can Culkin emulate Plummer’s Oscars feat?
In what is the first Oscar nomination of his career, Culkin is up for Best Supporting Actor for his performance alongside Jesse Eisenberg in the comedy-drama A Real Pain. Written and directed by Eisenberg, the movie is also a contender for Best Original Screenplay at Sunday’s ceremony.
However, A Real Pain is not in the running for Best Picture - a fact which would set a Culkin win apart from every Best Supporting Actor award since 2012, notes ScreenRant’s Ben Sherlock.
Sherlock points out that a cast member of a movie not nominated for Best Picture has not won Best Supporting Actor since Christopher Plummer 13 years ago.
At the 84th Academy Awards, Plummer claimed the accolade for his role in Beginners, a film that accrued no other Oscar nods.
Who are the 2025 Best Supporting Actor nominees? The full list:
Yura Borisov, Anora
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce, The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice
What are the Best Supporting Actor betting odds?
Culkin is the bookmakers’ overwhelming favorite, with moneyline odds of -1800 to -3500, according to the betting comparison website Oddschecker.
He is followed in the betting by A Complete Unknown’s Edward Norton, who is valued at +1100 to +1600. Anora’s Yura Borisov is third favorite, per Oddschecker, at +1800 to +2300. The Brutalist’s Guy Pearce and The Apprentice’s Jeremy Strong - an actor who starred alongside Culkin on the hit TV series Succession - are the apparent outsiders for the award (+2000 to +2900).
Following Culkin’s success so far this awards season - he has already won best supporting actor honors at the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Critics’ Choice Awards - Rolling Stone’s David Fear says the Oscar is “basically his to lose”, while ScreenRant’s Greg MacArthur has declared: “At this point, it would be stunning and unprecedented if Culkin didn’t take home the Best Supporting Actor award.”
A whole host of other entertainment-news outlets, such as Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, also name him as their anticipated winner.
Pearce agrees that the Oscar appears destined to go to Culkin, telling an interview with the U.K. newspaper The Guardian this week: “I’m not gonna win! Kieran will win, again.”
Watch the trailer for A Real Pain:
When are the 2025 Academy Awards?
The 2025 Oscars, which will be hosted by Conan O’Brien, are to be held on Sunday, March 2.
Broadcast live in the United States by ABC, the Academy Awards are scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. You can stream ABC on the online platform fubo, which offers new users a free introductory trial.
Related stories
Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all.
Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.
Complete your personal details to comment