Oscars 2017: Dark Horse/Upset Predictions

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Hell or High Water

Frontrunner: La La Land

Potential Upset: Hell or High Water

Sometimes, a movie is well liked but doesn’t have much of a chance of winning Best Picture. It seems unlikely that Hell or High Water will steal the big award out from under La La Land, especially considering it already has more serious rivals, fans might put their support behind another, more winnable award: Best Screenplay.

Hell or High Water is a western thriller starring Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Jeff Bridges, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actor. The film was well received, to say the least: it’s currently sitting at 98% at Rotten Tomatoes. La La Land, for comparison, is at 93%. Hell or High Water has been praised for bringing the Western genre back and for being a heist thriller that uses character development instead of gun-slinging action.

The majority of awards attention around Hell or High Water is for Bridges and the original screenplay by Taylor Sheridan, who also penned the crime thriller Sicario. For Hell or High Water, Sheridan’s been Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominated and has taken home the top prize from many critics groups across the U.S. If fans of the movie (of which there are many) are looking to give it a win, this category is their best bet.