2026 Oscars Guide and What's Making Us Happy
Pop Culture Happy Hour
NPR
4.5 • 11.6K Ratings
🗓️ 13 March 2026
⏱️ 52 minutes
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Summary
For a list of our favorite Oscar nominated films, check out our list at Letterboxd — at letterboxd.com/nprpopculture.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The 2026 Oscars have something for everyone. |
| 0:07.8 | Vampires, car chases, show tunes, ping pong, Shakespeare, and we're ready to talk about all of it. |
| 0:14.1 | As always, some categories seem like locks, but there are also some real toss-ups, and as always, we'll be rooting for some upsets. I'm Stephen Thompson. And I'm Linda Holmes. On this episode of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, we're offering up a guide to this year's Oscars. Joining us today are our fellow Pop Culture Happy Hour host, Glenn Weldon. Hello, Glenn. Hey, Linda, it's that time of year when I start worrying about my friend Oscar Gold. |
| 0:38.8 | You know why? Because everyone starts chasing him. Chasing the poor guy. |
| 0:42.2 | First they give him all kinds of nods. There's all kind of Oscar nods. |
| 0:44.7 | And then they start chasing him. It's weird. Weird, I tell you. |
| 0:47.3 | We are off to a great start. And also welcome to Ayesha Harris. Hello, my friend. |
| 0:53.8 | Linda, it's been 84 years of this award season. We finally made it. |
| 1:01.7 | Well, I am so glad to be here with all of you for our big Oscars show. As we always do, we've checked out all the nominees in the major categories, and we've all got opinions about what |
| 1:11.7 | will win and what should win. So let's get directly to it. We are going to start at the top with |
| 1:17.1 | Best Picture. Stephen, kick us off. All right. Well, first up, we've got two very different sports |
| 1:22.6 | movies. Marty Supreme, Timothy Salome, plays a-class heel, aiming to become a table tennis champion |
| 1:29.2 | in the 1950s. And I have tremendous respect for your money, and I know it's hard to believe, but I'm telling you this game that fills stadiums overseas. And it's only a matter of time before it fills stadiums in United States, too, before I'm staring at you from the cover of a Wheaties box. and F1, Brad Pitt, plays a veteran F1 driver who clashes with a young hot shot. |
| 1:48.1 | When was the last time you won a race? |
| 1:49.6 | Sunday, Daytona. |
| 1:50.8 | Oh, I'm sorry. I meant Formula One. |
| 1:53.3 | Oh, I'm sorry. Then same as you. |
| 1:56.5 | All right. Next up, we've got two films from directors who have earned their fair share of Oscar nominations. |
| 2:02.3 | We've got Bagonia, Yorgos Lanthamos' movie, where Emma Stone's high-powered CEO is kidnapped by conspiracy theorists and accused of being an alien. |
| 2:12.0 | Where is my hair? |
| 2:13.2 | Your hair has been destroyed. |
| 2:14.8 | You shaved off my hair? |
... |
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