2014 Oscar Nominations Predictions: Best Director (Updated 1/15)

Until recently the film that wins the Oscar for Best Director also wins Best Picture. However, last year Ang Lee of Life of Pi won Best Director, while the Ben Affleck helmed Argo took Best Picture. Could this happen again this year? Check out the current frontrunners for BEST DIRECTOR below! Be sure to take a look at all our predictions here.

***UPDATED 1/15

The numbers next to the films are the number of spots the changed from our last predictions.
A red – means they have moved down
An orange – means they remain in the same spot
A green + means the have moves up
NEW means they have been added to the list.

Alfonso Cuarón’s visually-stunning space thriller “Gravity” may land him his first Oscar

Locks for a Nomination
1. Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity (-) (The film is a director’s masterpiece. It is visual-stunning and on a grand scale. It is comparable to last year’s Best Director winner Life of Pi.)
2. Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave (-) (Despite last year’s inconsistency, the winner of Best Picture usually wins Best Director. It may be an uphill climb, but McQueen has the power of his film behind him.)

Safe Bet
3. David O. Russell, American Hustle (-) (His last two films reaped Best Picture and Best Director nominations. He is clearly an Academy favorite. He also is bolstered by the film’s surprise win at the NYFCC awards.

Could Be Any of Them
4. Spike Jonze, Her (+1) (Spike Jonze’s modern love story has been receiving strong critical notices and recently won the Best Film and Best Director awards from the National Board of Review. Jonze and the film are both dark horse contenders)
5. Alexander Payne, Nebraska (+1) (Nebraska has been getting a slew of awards attention. This in addition to Payne’s academy history could push him over the edge.)
6. Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street (-2) (He is arguably one of the greatest film directors of all time, who is going completely against the grain of his usual fair.)
7. Joel and Ethan Coen, Inside Llewyn Davis (-) (The Coens are an Oscar favorite and have been receiving rave reviews for their homage to the 1960’s New York folk scene)
8. Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips (-) (He reaped a surprise bid for his film United 93, but more than that Captain Phillips is a tightly directed ship (pun intended), that is intense and thrilling.)

Dark Horse Candidate
9. Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale Station (-) (Some are comparing its awards traction to last year’s Beasts of the Southern wild, which reaped a Best Director bid. Coogler creates a heartbreaking, honest film in his debut.)