Oscars 2026 Best Supporting Actor Lineup: Nominees Leaderboard & Predicted Winner

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Updated Jan 27, 2026, 4:30 PM EST

Cooper Hood is the Associate Editor for all new movie releases, in theaters and on streaming. In addition to writing articles about these titles and upcoming releases, he also oversees content planning for each, ensuring that ScreenRant continues to cover major releases for months after their release.

He has written various reviews for ScreenRant that appear on Rotten Tomatoes, coordinated Oscars and San Diego Comic-Con coverage, appeared on CNN to talk about Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning, and done select interviews with talent over the years.

Screen Rant's Oscars 2026 coverage continues with a look at Best Supporting Actor, which is one of the more competitive categories at the 98th Academy Awards. After Kieran Culkin won for A Real Pain last year, it's my honor once again to provide insight to this race throughout the remainder of award season.

On January 22, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences officially made the Best Supporting Actor lineup known through the 2026 Oscar nominations: Benicio del Toro (One Battle After Another), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another), and Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value).

As precursors continue to shake up this race, I'll be updating this whenever necessary. But for now, here's how the Best Supporting Actor race stacks up.

Commentary and predictions updated on January 27

5. Delroy Lindo (Sinners)

Delroy Lindo's recognition was one of the best Oscars 2026 nomination surprises. He earns his first Academy Award nomination for Sinners even though he didn't secure recognition from any of the major precursors: Golden Globes, Actor Awards, Critics' Choice Awards, or BAFTA.

That alone makes Lindo's chances of winning Best Supporting Actor quite slim. However, his nomination here speaks volumes because of that fact, too. Perhaps there is so much support for Sinners after its record-breaking nomination count that Lindo will rise to the top. The difficulty is that there will be no signs of this coming, so his win is tough to predict.

4. Sean Penn (One Battle After Another)

Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn) in uniform and looking solemn in One Battle After Another

Sean Penn has the most cache with the Oscars among this Best Supporting Actor lineup. This marks his sixth acting nomination, albeit the first in supporting. He's also a two-time Oscar winner thanks to Mystic River and Milk. The latter was his last bit of recognition from the Academy, so his standing with voters 17 years later is unclear.

Still, Penn has been a consistent presence throughout awards season. He got nominations from all four precursors: Golden Globes, Actor Awards, Critics' Choice Awards, and BAFTA. But Penn didn't win at the Globes or CCA, so he'll need to take home a victory at the Actor Awards or BAFTA if he wants a better shot at actually winning.

3. Benicio del Toro (One Battle After Another)

Bob and Sensei bowing at each other as Sensei gives him his rifle in One Battle After Another

Benicio del Toro is a very real contender to win Best Supporting Actor, even if he's in third position right now. His performance gained a lot of traction with critics during awards season, propelling him to nominations at all four major precursors, just like Penn. But he's also followed in his One Battle After Another co-star's footsteps of not winning any of them, yet.

That could change with the Actor Awards or BAFTA. He's a presumed top-two contender at the Actor Awards, which has correctly matched with the Oscar winner in nine consecutive years (as well as 16 of the last 18 times). A win at either would potentially position him to win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar again, 25 years after winning for Traffic.

The trouble for him and Penn is that they could cancel each other out a bit, allowing other performances to have better chances to win.

2. Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein)

The Creature dressed in fur in Frankenstein

Jacob Elordi went from uncertain contender to legitimate threat to win Best Supporting Actor thanks to the reception of Frankenstein within the industry. He's picked up nominations at the Golden Globes, Actor Awards, Critics' Choice Awards, and BAFTA. Elordi won Best Supporting Actor at CCA to show that he should not be overlooked in this race.

He could still win at Actor Awards and BAFTA. The former feels more likely, which, as covered with del Toro, would be a huge bump for him. If the Academy wants to anoint Elordi as one of the industry's biggest rising stars, voting for him to win the Oscar as a breakthrough performance would be one way to do that.

Predicted Best Supporting Actor Winner: Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value)

Stellan Skarsgård half smiling in Sentimental Value

I'm still of the belief that Skarsgård is in the lead position for the win. He's got the showiest role among the Sentimental Value cast, and he's had a strong showing at precursors, despite a miss from the Actor Awards (which didn't nominate any international performances).

Aiding Skarsgård's position is the win he had at the Golden Globes. That gave him a victory directly against all his fellow Oscar nominees, except Lindo. With the Globes making changes in recent years to try and be more respected and have a stronger influence over the awards season, that win could be what propels Skarsgård to being an Academy Award winner.

The career narrative of Skarsgård's candidacy should also help, too. He's a widely respected and celebrated actor with decades of experience. He's not a previous winner or someone who voters could see as having an entire lifetime ahead of them to compete for more Oscars. That's why I'll remain with him as the Best Supporting Actor winner at the Oscars 2026.

ScreenRant's additional Oscars predictions: