Oscars 2016: How To Watch In Australia (Yes, Online) And What To Watch Out For

Will it be a lovely day for Mad Max, or is Leonardo DiCaprio’s bear-battling, bison-biting revenge flick The Revenant set to sweep the 88th Academy Awards?

Here's what you need to know, sports fans.

How Can We Watch In Australia?

The Oscars are set to air on the Nine Network today, live, as well as on its newly launched streaming service, 9Now. You'll need to sign up, but at least it's free. The show kicks off at 12:30pm AEST.

What’s All The Controversy?

For the second consecutive year, only white performers have been nominated in the four acting categories, inspiring the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. Expect host Chris Rock to, you know, mention this during his opening monologue.

Also, the ceremony’s producers neglected to invite Anhoni - the first-ever Oscar-nominated transgender performer - to sing her Best Original Song contender “Manta Ray”, despite asking Lady Gaga, The Weeknd and Sam Smith to perform their own nominated tunes. She decided to boycott the show, understandably.

You can read more in my essay: Worst. Oscars. Ever: How The Academy Loses in 2016, No Matter Who Wins.

Well, Who Is Going To Win?

The Revenant leads the pack with 12 nominations and is tipped to take Best Picture (though it faces stiff competition from The Big Short and Spotlight).

Its director, Alejandro González Iñárritu, is also expected to win his second consecutive Best Director prize (following Birdman) and its cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki, is expected to collect a record-breaking third consecutive victory (after Birdman and Gravity).

Thirteen Aussies are up for prizes, with twelve of those coming from Mad Max: Fury Road, the most-nominated movie in Aussie history.

Carol's Cate Blanchett, however, is expected to lose the Best Actress prize to Brie Larson, for Room.

Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl) and Sylvester Stallone (Creed) are most likely to win Best Supporting Actress and Supporting Actor, respectively.

Oh, and there’s this guy Leo. Apparently he’s in with a shot too.

See the nominees here.

Who Should I Root For?

Whomever you like! There’s no wrong answer! (Except, as usual, Eddie Redmayne.) Feel free to read through our reviews of the Best Picture-nominated movies, if you’re having a hard time picking a favourite.

I’ve ranked them in order of personal preference. Feel free to argue about it in the comments below.