Without exaggeration, this year’s Academy Awards season has been a bust. And if you’re an annual fan, making predictions who or what will win, it’s an ugly challenge.

So, watching the Oscarcast today (March 2) on ABC (2 p.m. live Hawaii time, repeating at 6:30 p.m.) will be a nail-biter.

Unlike last year’s top competitors, where there were two front-runners — “Oppenheimer” (which won big) and “Barbie” – who led the pack in guesstimation.

This season has been weird, dominated by foreign entries, with titles only briefly screened in movie theaters and, in certain cases, streaming on cable TV.  Methinks if a film is not shown in a regular movie theater, where folks can attend and buy tickets, it ought not to be eligible for contention for an Oscar, the prime movie prize. Showing it on TV is a cop-out.

There now are 10 nominees for Best Picture. To predict which one will win, when access to watch ‘em is highly limited, is a real challenge. Of the 10 in contention, I saw only five this year, four in theaters, one via streaming on TV.

One certainty: “Wicked” has been the biggest box office hit, grossing more than $700 million so far. But aside from technical rewards, don’t expect it to win Best Picture laurels or acting honors. It’s clearly this year’s monetary champ.

So my predictions are shamefully flawed, largely based on what I’ve read, not seen. Hunches shouldn’t count, but what the heck…I’ll take my chances in the key categories.

So stay with me. Please.

Best Picture

Nominees

Anora”
“The Brutalist”
“A Complete Unknown”
“Conclave”
“Dune: Part II”
“Emilia Pérez”
“I’m Still Here”
“Nickel Boys”
“The Substance”
“Wicked”

Prediction:  “Conclave.” Sticking with a traditional Hollywood film, a fascinating ritual on how a Pope  is selected. This, as a real life Pope’s health is in jeopardy

Favored: “Anora.”

Best Director

Nominees:
Sean Baker, “Anora”                           
Brady Corbet, “The Brutalist”  
James Mangold, “A Complete Unknown”
Jacques Audiard, “Emilia Pérez”
Coralie Fargeat, “The Substance”

Prediction: Sean Baker, “Anora.” (A certainty, since Edgar Berger, who directed “Conclave,” is absent among the nominees).

Best Actor

Nominees:
Adrien Brody, “The Brutalist”          
Timothée Chalamet, “A Complete Unknown”
Colman Domingo, “Sing Sing”
Ralph Fiennes, “Conclave”
Sebastian Stan, “The Apprentice”

Prediction: Timothée Chalamet, “A Complete Unknown”

Favored: Adrien Brody

Best Actress

Nominees:
Cynthia Erivo, “Wicked” 
Mikey Madison, “Anora” 
Demi Moore, “The Substance”
Karla Sofía Gascón, “Emilia Pérez”
Fernanda Torres, “I’m Still Here”

Prediction: Karla Sofía Gascón, “Emilia Pérez”
Favored: Demi Moore

Best Supporting Actor

Nominees:
Yura Borisov, “Anora” 
Kieran Culkin, “A Real Pain” 
Edward Norton, “A Complete Unknown” 
Guy Pearce, “The Brutalist” 
Jeremy Strong, “The Apprentice”

Prediction: Kieran Culkin, “A Real Pain”

Favored: Kieran Culkin

Best Supporting Actress

Nominees:
Monica Barbaro, “A Complete Unknown”
Ariana Grande, “Wicked”                  
Felicity Jones, “The Brutalist” 
Isabella Rossellini, “Conclave” 
Zoe Saldaña, “Emilia Pérez”

Prediction: Zoe Saldaña, “Emilia Pérez”

Favored: Zoe Saldaña,

 Best Song

Nominees:
“El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez” 
“The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight”
“Like a Bird” from “Sing Sing”
“Mi Camino” from “Emilia Pérez”
“Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late”

Prediction: “El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez” 

Favored: “El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez” 

And that’s Show Biz…

“Moana 2,” the animated sequel from Disney, will open in theaters on Nov. 27 this year.

The film originally was set to stream on Disney+, but the casting was vague  then,  mostly focusing on Dwayne Johnson repeating his role as Maui, the demi-god.

Auli‘i Cravalho,  the Kamehameha Schools student who voiced the original film when she was 14, earlier declined to continue as the titular character in the sequel, but ultimately returned to repeat the role that launched her film career.

Auli’i Cravalho, left, will recreate Moana’s voice, and will co-produce an upcoming live-action “Moana” film but won’t be in it.

“Moana 2” was directed by David G. Derek Jr., with music by Grammy winners Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, Grammy nominee Opetaia Foa’i and three-time Grammy winner Mark Mancina. 

Meanwhile, the  live action “Moana” also will emerge as a theatrical film, with the aforementioned Dwayne Johnson recreating his Maui role.

 A young actress has yet to be named to play Moana, since Cravalho would be too old now, to recreate her cartoon character. However, she will be an  exec producer of the live-action project, which will be directed by Thomas Kail, pictured left, of “Hamilton” fame, with casting still under way, and filming set from June to September in Atlanta . Johnson also will also earn co- producer credit.

 The live-action film is pegged to premiere June 27, 2025. …

Emme’s celebratory moment set for April 27

A Celebration of Life for Emme Tomimbang Burns is slated from 3 to 7 p.m. April 27 at the FilCom Center in Waipahu. Full details are still being finalized.

Tomimbang Burns died Feb. 19 at Queen’s Medical Center, while undergoing open heart surgery. She was 73 and a pioneering figure in the Filipino community, best known as a journalist and the producer, anchor and host of her TV magazine franchise, “Emme’s Island Moment”…

Broadway grosses, for week ending Feb. 25

“Wicked,” which has been bridesmaid to “The Lion King” for quite a spell, last week switched positions with the Disney show, claiming the No. 1 slot of top Broadway shows with grosses topping $2 million.

Here are the Top 10 grossing shows, courtesy The Broadway Guild:

1—”Wicked,” $2,017 million.

2—“The Lion King,” $2,004 million.

3—”Hamilton,” $1,876 million.

4—”Merrily We Roll Along,” $1,566 million.

5—”MJ The Musical,” $1,478 million.

6—”Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” $1,424 million.

7—”Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” $1,350 million.

8—”Aladdin,” $1,340 million.

9-“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” $1,298 million.

10—”& Juliet,” $1,137 million.

Here’s the full roster of the Broadway attractions:

And that’s Show Biz…

Watch out for roaring dinosaurs; they’ll soon  be roaming in Hawaii again.

“Jurassic World IV,” a Universal project, is in development and part of the film will be filmed in the islands again.

So, the terrorizing, chomping creatures will be before the cameras later this year.

The project will apparently be a total reboot of the franchise; it’s not a prequel, nor a sequel, but a newbie.

Thus, don’t expect to see familiar actors and actresses from previous casts and projects, unless there are flashbacks.

“Jurassic World IV” will be the seventh in the long-running franchise, following “Jurassic Park” (1993), “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” (1997), “Jurassic Park III” (2001), “Jurassic World “ (2015), “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” (2018), and “Jurassic World: Dominion” (2022).

Producers Frank Marshall and Patrick Cowley, who worked on the last three films, will return, but Steven Spielberg, still associated with the franchise since he directed the first “Jurassic Park” and “The Lost World,” will only be an executive producer. A director is not yet attached to the film…

More Bruno, with Silk Sonic, in Vegas

We posted recently that Hawaii’s Bruno Mars will do 12 shows this summer in Las Vegas.

But an update: He may also be involved, with  Anderson .Paak, his collaborator in R&B group, Silk Sonic, at the Dolby Live venue at the Park MGM Resort in Sin City.

“It’s happening!” Mars tweeted a few days back. “The sexiest party of the year! Them Silk Sonic Boyz are performing Live in Las Vegas!”

The Silk Sonic residency started Sunday  (Feb. 25) and will continue through April 2. If you’re Vegas bound, you might inquire at the MGM about specific show times and dates…

Around town…

The Shari Lynn Trio will do a one-nighter March 2 at Medici’s at Manoa Marketplace. It’s a familiar venue for Shari, who will be reunited with Jim Howard, pianist, and John Kolivas, bassist.

Shari (pictured) is hoping that the booking – her first time there in a long time — will materialize into a monthly gig again;  Medici’s used to be one-a-month stop for her. As her fans know, her repertoire is chicken soup for the soul, relying on old school favorites from the Great American Songbook, the files of jazz greats,  and the catalogue of Broadway melodies.

I would normally try to be there, but I don’t do stairs anymore, since I have a walker following surgery and other health issues. There is an elevator nearby at the shopping center, but it does not service Medici’s.

Dinner is served at 6 p.m., entertainment is from 7:30 to 10 p.m.

Tickets: $49, includes a served meal. Call (808) 351-0901…

And that’s Show Biz…