Each year in Los Angeles, all the beautiful people of Hollywood gather together to hand out gold-plated trophies and pat each other on the back in an event known as the Academy Awards. The first ceremony took place in 1929, and it’s grown into an annual pop culture phenomenon filled with fashion and pageantry. Some watch for the awards, while millions of others tune in to see what the celebs are wearing on the red carpet.

In addition to watching the event, fans of gambling and/or cinema can also take advantage of Oscars betting. Most sportsbooks offer a smattering of options around awards season, and the savvy cinephile has an opportunity to clean up on a few well-placed underdog bets.

Oscar Experts Typing: Hey Oscar voters, don't forget about these contenders 2021 Oscars calendar: Critics Choice Awards on March 7, Academy Awards nominations voting ends March 10. Bovada is our top rated betting site for Americans looking to bet on the Oscars. They are taking bets on every category of the award show and the sportsbook as a whole is solely focused on the American market, which allows them to cater specifically to the American public in terms of bet offerings, deposits/withdrawals and customer service.

How Oscar Voting Works

Oscar winners are voted on by the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. There are around 6,000 members in this organization, 33% of which are comprised of former award nominees. The other 67% have been nominated by current members and voted in by the Academy’s governing body.

In most categories, nominees are determined by the members of that specific category. For example, directors determine the nominees for Best Director. The Best Picture nominees are voted on by all members, and categories such as Documentary and Foreign Film are selected by a special panel.

Once the nominees have been announced, members may vote in all available categories. The results are tabulated and announced during the annual telecast of the Oscars (held in late February). Winning or being nominated for an Oscar increases a film’s revenue, and male actors can enjoy a salary bump of up to 81%.

Academy Award Betting Options

Some sportsbooks offer a wide range of wagers for the Oscars, while some limit the number to one or two. The following are among the most common:

• Futures Winner – Some sites offer future bets on Oscar winners before the nominations are even announced. The odds are greater due to the level of uncertainty, but the potential payout is also higher.
• Outright Winner – These odds are released after the nominees have been announced, and they allow bettors to predict the outright winners for various categories. Best Picture and Best Actor are always a given, but some sites may take wagers on Screenplay, Cinematography, and even Best Animated Feature.
• Over/Under – If a film is nominated for multiple Oscars, expect an over/under to be available. In this style of wagering, the bettor must choose if the actual number of awards won will be higher or lower than the number listed by the oddsmaker.
• Proposition Bets – Also known as “prop bets,” this type of wager can cover a wide range of subject matter. Examples might include the over/under on the length of the show, the brand of dress worn by a celebrity, or whether or not the host takes a selfie with someone during the broadcast. Some oddsmakers can get rather wild with this option.

Predicting Oscar Winners

Some Academy Award winners come out of nowhere, but the outcome can often be predicted with a bit of patience and research. The best place to start is with earlier awards shows such as the Golden Globes and SAG. If a film or performer is consistently successful in the run-up to the Oscars, then they’re a good bet to take home the little statuette.

Hollywood loves a good message movie, so keep this in mind when picking your Best Picture candidate. Look for movies about war, slavery, and the Holocaust, as the members of the Academy seem to have a perpetual soft spot for any film involving an “issue” or human suffering.

Actors and actresses are also in a good position to take home an Oscar when they get to do a lot of “acting.” I’m talking about scene-stealing performances with lots of shouting and other slightly melodramatic behavior. Anything by Daniel Day-Lewis is a good example, as is any role that deals with deformities, handicaps, or a handsome performer being made to look ugly (Charlize Theron in Monster, for example).

The 2020 Oscar nominations are in and the odds are available for anyone interested in betting on this years Academy Awards. The 2020 edition of the awards show is set to take place on February 9th, and after the success of last years show, there will once again be no official host this year.

On this page I will show the odds for some of the major categories, and also provide a simple 3 step guide to betting on the awards if you live in in America.

Where To Bet On The Oscars

• Built for American bettors
• Wide variety of competitive betting lines
• Easy to navigate betting platform

Bovada is the best sportsbook for Americans looking to bet on the Oscars this year. All of the odds below were taken from the Bovada sportsbook in early-February. I suggest checking on Bovada.lv for yourself to see the updated odds. You can find the Oscars on the Bovada sportsbook page by clicking on ‘Entertainment’ in the ‘All Sports’ section.

Bovada Oscars

Best Picture

1917 is the favorite to win the coveted best picture award, but both Parasite and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood are also being given legitimate chances to win the award according to the odds. 1917 is a shoe-in for best cinematography, but adding best picture would really make the night for this film.

Best Actor

According to the odds it seems like Joaquin Phoenix is close to a sure thing to win the Best Actor award this year for his portrayal of Arthur Fleck in Joker. That said, Adam Driver has also received a great deal of recognition for his role in Marriage Story, so he may have a chance to pull off the upset.

Best Actress

Renee Zellweger is a big time -2000 favorite for her role in Judy. Scarlett Johansson is being given similar odds to her costar from Marriage Story, but I think this category is pretty well decided.

To see the odds for all of the other categories head over to Bovada.lv and select ‘Entertainment’ after opening up the ‘All Sports’ categories.

Bet On The Oscars – How To Guide

Follow these 3 basic steps to get your Oscars bets in before the award ceremony on February 9th.

#1. Open A Bovada.lv Account

Bovada is our top rated betting site for Americans looking to bet on the Oscars. They are taking bets on every category of the award show and the sportsbook as a whole is solely focused on the American market, which allows them to cater specifically to the American public in terms of bet offerings, deposits/withdrawals and customer service.

New sign ups at Bovada currently receive a 50% matching bonus up to $250 on first deposits. Check out our full review here.

#2. Deposit

Bovada accepts Visa, MasterCard and bitcoin deposits.

Bovada Oscars

Withdrawals can be made via bitcoin or courier check.

Bovada Oscars Odds

#3. Place Your Bets

You’re now ready to place your bets on the Oscars.

Once at the Bovada website select ‘Sports’ from the top navigation bar, and then select ‘All Sports (A-Z)’ in the next menu bar. From here you will be able to select ‘Entertainment’, which will bring up all of the Oscars bets available to be made.

If you’re new to betting online check out our betting guide section for some basic articles that should help you get started.

Ready to bet? Click here to visit Bovada.lv.

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