LOS ANGELES — From “Wicked” to “A Complete Unknown” and “The Brutalist,” there are so many great movies and performances up for an Oscar this year — but picking the winners isn’t as simple as one would think.

It’s one of the most recognizable awards out there and one of the most prestigious – winning an Oscar can propel a career, break barriers, and it can make both history and dreams come true.

So with so much hanging in the balance, who decides the winners?

Film journalist and author of “50 Oscar Nights” Dave Karger is shedding some light on the process.

“The Academy has about 10,000 voting members, and they’re all in different branches depending on what kind of job they have,” Karger said. “If you’re an actor, you’re in the actors’ branch. If you’re a writer, you’re in the writers’ branch. For the Oscar nominations, you only get to vote on your specific branch.”

However, when it comes to picking the winners in each category, now everyone in the Academy votes on every category – which can make it harder to predict.

“It creates some interesting challenges, because someone who’s in the costume design branch doesn’t really understand what it takes to be a great sound technician, so how can they really be voting on those very different categories?” Karger said.

As for voting, it’s all done online. There are no paper ballots and it’s all a secret.

Each member picks one winner for every category, with one notable exception for the biggest award of the night.

“When you’re doing your Best Picture ballot, you’re looking at the 10 nominees and you’re ranking them one to 10,” Karger said.

All of the number one votes are counted. If one film comes away with more than 50%, then that’s the winner.

If no film meets the threshold, the second, then third, then fourth-ranked choices come into play.

“So even if you’re not someone’s number one choice, you need to be someone’s number two choice or number three choice,” Karger said.

The Academy says it uses this voting method to ensure the best picture winner is the most widely liked film of the year – which means on Oscar night, anything can happen.

“That’s why I think there’s a chance that ‘Emilia Perez,’ despite having the most nominations, might not win,” Karger said. “For ‘The Brutalist,’ if it’s not someone’s number one choice, I think there’s a better chance that it’s that person’s two or three, which I think increases its chances to be the eventual winner.”

And with voting now closed, Price Waterhouse Cooper tallies everything up, and according to the Academy, only two partners know the results before they are announced.

The Academy says voting members do not need to watch every movie, it’s not required, but they do ask voting members to watch as many of the movies as possible.

March 2 is Oscar Sunday! Watch the 2025 Oscars live on ABC and Hulu.

Live red carpet coverage starts at 3:30 p.m. ET 12:30 p.m. PT with “On The Red Carpet at the Oscars.”

Watch all the action on the red carpet live on ABC, streaming live on OnTheRedCarpet.com and on the On the Red Carpet Facebook and YouTube pages.

The 97th Oscars, hosted by Conan O’Brien, begins at 7 p.m. ET 4 p.m. PT. and will be followed by a special preview of “American Idol.”

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