The top Oscars front-runners and dark horses of 2018 so far

VENICE, ITALY – AUGUST 31: Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper attend ‘A Star Is Born’ photocall during the 75th Venice Film Festival at Sala Casino on August 31, 2018 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images)

Best Actress

Best Actress is often one of the most competitive categories at the Oscars. There have been upsets — how has Amy Adams STILL not won an Oscar?! — but usually, all the performances are worthy of winning some hardware. This year the competition is no different.

While some Hollywood veterans are in the running, there’s a certain newcomer you may have heard of who is picking up serious steam: Lady Gaga. The Grammy-winning artist and Golden Globe-winning actress (for her stint on American Horror Story: Hotel) has been getting rave reviews for her starring role in the latest iteration of A Star is Born.

Gaga plays Ally, a struggling young performer who meets a musician (Bradley Cooper) that emboldens her to pursue her career and become a star. Janet Gaynor and Judy Garland both earned Best Actress noms for their respective roles in A Star Is Born years ago, though Barbra Streisand was snubbed (but she won the Oscar for Best Original Song).

Critics and audiences have been saying that this could be the role of a lifetime for Gaga, with many saying that she’s a shoo-in for the top prize. We already knew she could sing with the greats, but if she lands an Oscar, her career will skyrocket even higher than it already is.

Dark Horse: Hollywood veteran and six-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close is getting a lot of Oscar buzz for her performance in The Wife. She’s getting some of the best reviews in her career, and this could be her chance to finally settle some unfinished business.