‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ Just Cleared Its Last Hurdle Before Oscar Night

If there was any doubt about what’s winning Best Picture next month at the Academy Awards, that has been removed. This past weekend, the biggest part of the award season went down, with the dueling Guilds of the Producers Guild Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards placing their stake in the race. Both ceremonies went for Everything Everywhere All At Once, building on its long-running success and setting it up for some major Oscar glory. The hurdles have all been cleared. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s happening.

Last year, I wrote here about how the film’s success was good for cinema on the whole. At the time, it was mostly just a tribute to its financial windfall and how audiences were responding to what would have, once upon a time, been considered an art film. Even on podcasts then, I was cautioning about getting too bullish on awards, just because of how old school the awards season is. Of course, somehow, I was being bearish on its chances, but that’s part of the fun surprise of this march to golden glory.

Early on, the awards talk for the movie seemed a bit premature. At the same time, I never said it wouldn’t happen, only that certain things needed to go down in order for it to happen. Well, literally everything did. Everything Everywhere All At Once stayed in the conversation, made money, and then was not ignored in the slightest when the precursors began. In fact, the longer they went on, the stronger it got.

After the critics groups, it was clear that the flick had staying power. The question had always been about Guilds. In particular, the Producers Guild, since they have the same preferential balloting system that the Academy uses. That system favors a wide variety of acceptance over outright passion, which led to some mild skepticism that Everything Everywhere All At Once could overcome that. Well, that was certainly not an issue with PGA. This was the moment that really solidified that it wasn’t just a strong possibility that the movie was going to take Best Picture, but the statistical probability as well.

Not only did the film take PGA, in addition to DGA with a big Directors Guild prize for The Daniels, it swept its Screen Actors Guild categories. With SAG now in the rearview mirror, there’s nothing really left for the opposition to do. Whether it’s The Banshees of Inisherin (which would have needed SAG desperately), The Fabelmans (DGA and PGA were its last stand), or Top Gun: Maverick (PGA and the preferential ballot was its one chip to play), it sure seems like we know how Oscar is going. Could something like All Quiet on the Western Front pose some sort of shocker threat? Maybe, but it sure seems like a long shot.

In the two weeks until the Academy Awards, the question is now not if it will win Best Picture, but if the movie can win even more. Michelle Yeoh‘s SAG win makes her on even ground with Cate Blanchett in Best Actress, while Jamie Lee Curtis‘ upset makes Best Supporting Actress very interesting now. Oscar won’t just be good for Everything Everywhere All At Once. As it stands, it may well end up being really good.

So, it somehow became a coronation. Fans of the flick are rightfully delighted, and even if you somehow don’t care for it, the pure uniqueness of the work should make it stand out as a top tier Oscar winner. The hurdles are all gone now, so we’re merely counting the says. Sit tight…

Stay tuned to see just how well Everything Everywhere All At Once does at the Academy Awards!